Joseph Irungu, known as Jowie, will not be attending his father’s funeral after High Court Judge Chacha Mwita declined to order the Kenya Prisons Services to escort him to Nakuru South Cemetery. Jowie’s father, Julius Irungu, is being buried today.
If allowed, Jowie would have been the first prisoner to benefit from the precedent set by High Court Judge Lawrence Mugambi in February. Judge Mugambi ruled that prisoners and detainees have the right to attend funerals of close family members. However, the Attorney General informed the court that despite this ruling, no regulations are in place to facilitate such attendance.
Jowie, sentenced to death for the murder of Monicah Kimani, had filed an application to attend his father’s burial, appealing the March 13, 2024, judgment by Justice Grace Nzioka. His mother, Anastacia Thama, expressed her willingness to cover the expenses to ensure Jowie’s presence at the funeral.
In her plea, Thama detailed the urgency due to the scheduled burial and the lack of response from the Commissioner General of Prisons. Despite her efforts, the bureaucratic delays hindered the possibility of a timely arrangement for Jowie’s attendance.
“A declaration be and is hereby issued that all sentenced prisoners and pretrial detainees held in custody have the right to be treated humanely which right includes permitting them to attend funeral and burials of their close family member unless there are compelling reasons for declining granting of permission,” Justice Mugambi had previously ruled. This ruling came from a case filed by journalist Moses Dola, who was jailed for the murder of his wife.
