Let Justice Prevail

Chapter Fourteen

Let Justice Prevail  

Moses A. Orang'o  

 

Written by Moses A. Orang'o 

Edited & Revised by Ilona Gracia

 

Chapter Fourteen 

Section 1 

If there had ever been any man who believed in Mr. Abdi's innocence, it was Judge Kioko. He sat on the balcony of the hotel located in the Maritime Island, at which he and his wife momentarily resided. He wondered about the verdict and exactly how he himself would have decided on it. Nonetheless, he was glad that he was not pushed that far. At this time, all he wanted was to enjoy his holiday with his wife, without any interference.  

"What are you thinking about honey?" Purity his equally plump wife asked when she approached him. She had just walked over from the living room.  

"Actually nothing of interest Purity, come and sit on this chair," he called out for her. He slightly tapped the empty chair beside him on his left with his left hand.  

Purity walked over to him, gave him a kiss on the cheek and then asked, "Tell me honey, did you truly believe that Mr. Abdi Anwar Bashir was guilty?"  

"That is certainly a tricky question," he responded, "At first, I believed he was guilty," he admitted, "Then as the events began to unfold, I had my share of doubts. Anyway, it was up to the jurors to determine that," he said defensively.  

"But is it not within your rightful place to dismiss the juror's verdict if you believe otherwise?" She looked at him questioningly.  

"It is honey," he replied, "Although; in my work I always want to trust the jurors to do the right thing. Anyway," he said abruptly, "Enough of this case, we are on vacation. Where do you propose we go today?" He wanted to know, while he looked at her adoringly.  

They just always looked so happy together; they acted like a young couple that just met and was totally 'head over heels' in love. As a matter of fact, they behaved more like newlyweds rather than like a couple that had been married for forty years already.  

"Let us go and see the famous Mantle Port Towers," Purity suggested, she also gave him a bit of a witty smile.  

 

Section 2 

When they arrived at the County Hall Hotel, Ojijo was astounded by the way he was welcomed by the stakeholders of the PDM party. Initially, he thought that they would consider him an intruder. Yet, the moment they arrived at that cocktail party, they accepted him with the same warmth that Mr. Abdi received. They mingled with the crowd, and Ojijo had an opportunity to talk to some of the politicians, who prior to that had practiced law. Some of them had previously held some kind of government positions, while others were incumbent.  

"Have you ever envisioned being a politician?" Mr. James Kibiong asked Ojijo while they chatted.  

"Actually, I have thought of it a number of times, but as time went by, I felt that perhaps I was destined to serve as a lawyer. To be honest, winning cases gives me greater satisfaction," Ojijo replied honestly.  

"I see," James responded, "Don't you find politics to be much more interesting? Just look at me," he insisted, "I have more power to do a little manipulation of events, I earn a big salary and above all, I still retain my capacity as a lawyer. I own a huge law firm with almost a hundred lawyers, and I rarely handle any of the cases personally. I mainly deal with contracts and title deeds, such as those matters that do not necessarily require my presence in the court. Nonetheless, I am absolutely aware of all that is happening in the courts. Don't you find that to be more appealing?" James probed then paused to catch his breath. He had a big smile on his face, which indicated his pride over his conquest and achievements.  

"That is good life, but had you always known that it would come to that?" Ojijo asked him.  

"Yes and no." James explained, "For instance, I did not know that I would be so successful. However, the one thing that I had always known was, that one day I would become a politician. Just as I had known, from the moment I started to comprehend things, that I would be a lawyer."  

"How long have you been a full time lawyer?" Ojijo asked.  

Just seconds before James could answer, their attention was drawn elsewhere. Mr. Kongoni Mwea, the Secretary General for the 'Peoples Democratic Movement' had rung the bell to make an announcement. His voice began to thunder through the hall.  

James quickly handed his card to Ojijo and said, "You should come and see me, so that we could talk some more; I see a lot of myself in you when I was only coming up."  

"Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please. We all know why we are here, but for the sake of those who don't, especially the visitors among us; let me tell you that we have come here to celebrate our first victory over our enemies. That is, 'enemy' in quotation."  

The moment he made that statement, it raised murmurs among those in attendance. "I place enemy in quotation", and he re-emphasized this even further as he continued, "Because unfortunately some among us still find it necessary to have certain business dealings with them," he expressed this with a noticeable disgust in his voice.  

"In spite of all that, I would like to say that we all have a common interest. So, allow me to welcome the man of the moment, the next president of the Peoples' Republic, Mr. Abdi Anwar Bashir.  

"Welcome Sir." His last words were barely audible. The crowd had gone into frenzy, clapping and cheering; it was an exciting moment that could have even drawn a quenched python to attention.  

"Thank you, thank you all," Abdi responded appreciatively, then raised his arms up to bring the room to silence, "Yes indeed, we are all winners!" The clapping and shouting echoed his words. "We have shown beyond reasonable doubt that we have iron feet to stump over our enemies," shouts of praise followed the remarks. "I want to thank all of you, who worked so hard, and I know most of you played a specific role in making all of this a success. In particular, Mr. Innocent, who elaborately told me how Clement could not ignore him, and how that would have been like committing suicide. Anyway, that was just a tip of the iceberg of what was to come. Our major battle is in a week's time, and I only hope that all of you sharpened your tools ready for a showdown."  

Shouts of, 'We have, we have!' were heard from the crowd.  

"That having been said, I want you all to look at what we have ahead of us, and all that was already done should be left behind."  

Resounding words of the Secretary General Mr. Mwea, "I agree with him that some of us still associate with those who have tried vehemently to slow us down. This is not a problem for us, as long as the enemies stand warned that we can also bite and we may just do it worse." Laughter accompanied by claps and cheers echoed his words. "All in all, I will urge you to continue with your business as usual. Usual in quotes, as in, be vigilant and weary of your adversaries as they may try to bring you down once more. "Walk proudly, but don't forget to look over your shoulders. We have a lot of our countrymen and women, as well as children, who keenly observe what we do from now on. Furthermore, when we present ourselves before the gathered crowd at our party's headquarters, let us be ready to not only lure the crowd, but also those watching us from all parts of our country, and the world at large. I have requested that our other officers in all other branch offices are required to install audio visual equipment so that everyone can keep up with what is happening here in the capital. I am quite confident that by the end of the day, we will be able to have more to show for than we ever did before. After the meeting, ladies and gentlemen, you still have a war to fight. Go to your constituencies and inform them that we are off the hook. Tell them what you have witnessed and encourage them all to vote. So, without taking anymore of your time, I request for you to take the wine being served, and let us cheer to our success and our commitment to fulfill our hopes, dreams and those of our fellow countrymen and women. To us all!" He concluded as he raised his glass high, and then lowered it to his lips. Sipping his drink, he was accompanied by shouts of hurray indicating the jovial mood of the party stakeholders and their confidence in him.