NAIROBI, Kenya Sep 7 \u2013 When David Kenani Maraga, the former Chief Justice who etched his name into Kenya\u2019s history books by nullifying a presidential election, says he wants to give Kenyans back their country, he does not sound like a typical politician.<\/p>\n
His voice is steady, his words plain, and his promise audacious.<\/p>\n
\u201cKenyans, in short, I will give you back your country. It has been stolen from you. I am going to strive to give it back to you,\u201d he told listeners on Capital FM\u2019s Thursday\u2019s Legal Insider Show<\/em> on September 4, 2025.<\/p>\n With those words, the man who once stood at the helm of the judiciary is now asking to be entrusted with the presidency in 2027.<\/p>\n Maraga\u2019s name carries weight. <\/p>\n He presided over one of the most daring judicial rulings in Africa when, in 2017, the Supreme Court he led nullified a presidential election. <\/p>\n That moment cemented his image as a stickler for the rule of law, unafraid to take on the executive.<\/p>\n He also advised former President Uhuru Kenyatta to dissolve Parliament for failing to enact the two-thirds gender rule, a decision that earned him political enemies and triggered budget cuts to the judiciary.<\/p>\n \u201cPoliticians tried to cripple us financially, but I had a duty to perform and I did it,\u201d he recalls.<\/p>\n It is that same uncompromising stance he now brings to politics, vowing to end what he calls a culture of lies, theft, and impunity.<\/p>\n For Maraga, corruption is Kenya\u2019s central illness. He accuses the country\u2019s top leadership of running government as a private business.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can\u2019t fight corruption when there is corruption, particularly at the top,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n \u201cUnless there is political will, nothing will change. The people who are supposed to fight corruption are the same ones stealing.\u201d<\/p>\n He points to wasteful foreign trips, inflated infrastructure projects, and even health reforms such as the Social Health Authority (SHA) which, in his words, are \u201cdesigned to loot.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cKenya is not poor,\u201d he insists. \u201cKenya is being robbed.\u201d<\/p>\n But how does a man without deep pockets survive in Kenya\u2019s money-soaked politics? <\/p>\n Maraga says he will rely on Kenyans themselves.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t have money myself,\u201d he admits. \u201cI am asking mama mboga<\/em> to give me ten bob, the boda boda rider to give a hundred bob. If you all do that, we will have more than we require.\u201d<\/p>\n It is a model borrowed from Barack Obama\u2019s grassroots fundraising in the United States, and one rarely tested in Kenya, where cash handouts often decide campaigns.<\/p>\n \u201cI will not bribe voters,\u201d he says. \u201cMy campaign will run on issues, not insults.\u201d<\/p>\n Perhaps the clearest sign that Maraga understands Kenya\u2019s shifting political ground lies in his approach to the youth.<\/p>\n \u201cGen Z are not asking for handouts,\u201d he says. \u201cThey are asking for fairness and a level playing field.\u201d<\/p>\n He envisions a creative economy where innovations, art, and intellectual property are backed with funding and turned into industries that employ millions. <\/p>\n It is a direct response to the frustrations of young people who have taken to the streets in recent protests, demanding accountability.<\/p>\n Maraga makes no apologies for grounding his politics in his Christian faith. <\/p>\n For him, values of justice, fairness, and honesty are not just personal virtues but national necessities.<\/p>\n \u201cI am not seeking the presidency to enrich myself,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n \u201cGod has blessed me with the little I have and I am happy with it. I want to serve. Politicians are paid well already; they don\u2019t need to steal.\u201d<\/p>\n It is a sharp contrast to the political class he criticizes, leaders he accuses of treating voters as pawns in a game of power and money.<\/p>\n Maraga\u2019s gamble is bold. <\/p>\n Kenya\u2019s political scene has never been kind to those who refuse to play by its rough rules. <\/p>\n Money, ethnic arithmetic, and political patronage remain the currency of power.<\/p>\n Yet, in a season where Kenyans are restless, young people are demanding change, and trust in traditional leaders is eroding, his message of honesty and restoration may resonate more than skeptics admit.<\/p>\n \u201cHold my hand,\u201d he tells Kenyans, \u201cand I will give you back your country. Something positive is going to happen.\u201d<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" NAIROBI, Kenya Sep 7 \u2013 When David Kenani Maraga, the former Chief Justice who etched his name into Kenya\u2019s history books by nullifying a presidential election, says he wants to give Kenyans back their country, he does not sound like a typical politician. His voice is steady, his words plain, and his promise audacious. \u201cKenyans, […]<\/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-120995","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\/120995","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=120995"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120995\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=120995"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=120995"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=120995"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\u2013 Why Maraga says Kenya is being robbed \u2013<\/h2>\n
\u2013 Faith, Integrity, and the Maraga vision for Kenya \u2013<\/h2>\n