Retired Kenyan Judge, Lee Muthoga has released his autobiography titled \u2018Audacity and Sacrifice: My Life and Career\u2019 to document his inspiring journey of close to 80 years, more than 30 of them as a legal professional.<\/p>\n
Muthoga details that his life began when he was born under a \u2018Mugumo\u2019 tree in Nyeri- Central Kenya in 1945 towards the end of the Second World War.<\/p>\n
A distinguished legal practitioner and judge of international repute, Judge Muthoga\u2019s life\u2019s journey mirrors that of a Mugumo (fig) tree \u2013 an evergreen tree that can grow as tall as 90 metres or 295ft that is also known for its longevity and considered sacred by the Agikuyu community.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy autobiography is an attempt to tell the truth as I see it. It is a sincere recollection of some of the events I have experienced throughout my life. In the book, I have included two elements that are not commonly found in autobiographies. First, there is a section of testimonials featuring accounts from people I have interacted with in various ways and this is because my life has been shaped by these interactions. Secondly, I have included a pictorial section that captures moments that may not be fully expressed in words,\u201d said Judge Muthoga during the book launch at a Nairobi hotel.<\/p>\n
\u201cAudacity and Sacrifice\u201d delves into Judge Muthoga\u2019s extraordinary journey as a family man, mentor, and advocate for justice, exploring themes of patriotism, pioneering advocacy, and the relentless pursuit of justice.<\/p>\n
The book chronicles his experiences as a lawyer and a public servant, illustrating his commitment to uplifting marginalized communities and creating better opportunities for Kenyan lawyers.<\/p>\n
Through personal anecdotes and insights, Judge Muthoga shares the lessons he has learned along the way.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe key lessons I have learnt in my career and in the process of writing this book are: define your vision, decide what you want to achieve, and then pursue it with determination. Have the courage to follow through on your goals, and be willing to make sacrifices along the way. You can achieve anything that your mind can conceive,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
His book takes readers on an inspiring journey from his humble beginnings during Kenya\u2019s emergency period declared by the British colonial government that was full of struggle, to his pursuit for education, a stellar legal career and significant contribution to the rise of the Black-Bar in Kenya, advocacy for children\u2019s rights, Kenya\u2019s return to multi-party politics and in his service to international justice systems.<\/p>\n
Judge Muthoga\u2019s demanding career life did not take him away from his family and community. In his book, he narrates his involvement in the lives of his immediate and extended family and in that of the less fortunate, especially children.<\/p>\n
The book also contains testimonials that attest to his commitment to mentor and tutor young legal professionals to achieve their full potential and make significant contribution in their areas of calling.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis law firm has nurtured many lawyers over the years and has contributed to developing the country\u2019s law. Amongst those who have passed through his mentorship, we have at least five judges serving in the superior courts, as well as senior advocates in both private practice and the corporate world,\u201d says Justice John Mutungi of the Environment and Land Court.<\/p>\n
The book serves as an inspiration to all people to be tenacious and to rise above the challenges that they face in their personal life and in the market place, to be principled, to pursue truth, justice, equality and the betterment of humanity irrespective of the consequences and without looking at what they will get in return.<\/p>\n
In his own words Judge Muthoga echoes his mother\u2019s wisdom and says \u201cNothing of real value has ever been achieved without sacrifice,\u201d which epitomizes his whole life.<\/p>\n
P.L.O. Lumumba a renowned fellow lawyer and orator in his foreword in the autobiography quotes African writer Chinua Achebe\u2019s Things Fall Apart that says:<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you see the mouth of a king, you cannot know that he once suckled his mother\u2019s breasts.\u201d The same can be said of Judge Muthoga by those who know the version of him that we interact with today. In this book, Lee enables us to see the embryonic days of his life and the twists and turns\u2026, to the stellar heights that he has attained through grit.\u201d<\/p>\n
His grit, courage and pursuit for fairness and justice is clearly seen from an early age when he would confront school administrations for unfairness including racism, and going for what he knew was his right to be admitted in his schools of choice both of which earned him several suspensions and expulsions.<\/p>\n
This would continue while he was a student at the University of East Africa\u2019s Faculty of Law in Dar es Salaam Tanzania and spill over into the Kenyatta and Moi administrations.<\/p>\n
These characters also saw him establish Muthoga and Company Advocates after only two years of graduating with a Bachelor of Laws degree.<\/p>\n
In his book, Muthoga recounts his involvement and contributions to the Law Society of Kenya in various positions including as its chairman, to the Africa Bar Association, the International Bar Association and the Commonwealth Lawyers Association.<\/p>\n
His relationship with J.M. Kariuki and representation of the family in the Parliamentary Select Committee formed to investigate his murder, his role as lead counsel in the Judicial Commission of Inquiry investigating the conduct of the former Attorney General, Charles Njonjo, as a member of the KANU Review Committee, chairing the team that investigated the 2003 Busia air crash to championing children\u2019s rights at the African Network for the Prevention and Protection Against Child Abuse and Neglect (ANPPCAN), and \u2018Tumshangilie Mtoto wa Africa\u2019 make interesting and inspiring reading.<\/p>\n
The reader will be able to see how Muthoga\u2019s work and contribution culminated to the highlight of his career with his election by the United Nations General Assembly as an ad litem Judge in the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (UN-ICTR) in 2003 up to 2012 and his appointment to continue to serve in its succeeding tribunal, the United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (UN-MICT).<\/p>\n
This compelling narrative invites readers to reflect on their own journeys and inspires them to pursue their aspirations with courage and dedication.<\/p>\n
Retired Kenyan Judge, Lee Muthoga.<\/p>\n
The post Retired Judge Muthoga releases autobiography<\/a> first appeared on KBC<\/a>.<\/p>\n The post Retired Judge Muthoga releases autobiography<\/a> appeared first on KBC<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Retired Kenyan Judge, Lee Muthoga has released his autobiography titled \u2018Audacity and Sacrifice: My Life and Career\u2019 to document his inspiring journey of close to 80 years, more than 30 of them as a legal professional. Muthoga details that his life began when he was born under a \u2018Mugumo\u2019 tree in Nyeri- Central Kenya in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-102091","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102091","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=102091"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102091\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=102091"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=102091"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=102091"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}