Judge who prefers men marrying more than one wife picked for Deputy CJ post

A Court of Appeal Judge who is a strong proponent of polygamy has been nominated for the powerful Deputy Chief Justice position.

Lady Justice Philomena Mbete Mwilu was on Monday picked by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) to be the next Deputy CJ.

Mwilu caused a stir during her interview for the Deputy CJ when she stated that she supports polygamy “as long as there is peace in the family”.

According to the Daily Nation, the Court of Appeal judge told the JSC that she has no objection to the practice provided those in such unions act within the law.

She pointed out that Kenyan communities have been practising polygamy for years, even before it was entrenched in the Constitution.

Sharing men

The judge noted that in the past, problems like property sharing in African communities did not arise when two people decided to live together and share a man.

Lady Justice Mwilu beat 15 other candidates to emerge victorious in the search for Kenya’s next DCJ to replace Kalpana Rawal who retired upon attaining the constitutional age of 70 years.

She graduated from the University of Nairobi and was admitted as an advocate of the High Court of Kenya in 1984.

She practiced law in the firms of Muthoga Gaturu & Company and later Mutunga & Company Advocates.

She worked as company secretary and headed a state corporation before being appointed as Judge of the High Court in 2007.

Lady Justice Mwilu also served in the Commercial Division in Nairobi, at the Eldoret High Court and the Civil Appeals sub-division of the High Court, the murder section of the Criminal Division and later headed the Environment and Land Division of the High Court.