Chief Justice David Maraga has come out to defend himself after facing media backlash for attending former President Daniel Moi’s son Jonathan Toroitich’s burial ceremony on Saturday instead of a church service.o
A section of netizens questioned why Maraga, a staunch Seventh Day Adventist, decided to skip church, and attend the final sendoff of Jonathan, who was a safari rally driver.
In a post on his official twitter account, Maraga said he did nothing wrong, adding that his religion allows him to do so.
“Condoling with the bereaved, even on a Sabbath, is in accordance with the teachings of the SDA Church and is in perfect harmony with the observance of the Sabbath,” he said through his official Twitter account on Monday.
Several leaders joined the family during the burial including Deputy President William Ruto.
In his speech, Ruto said that the death of Moi was not only a big blow the family but also entire nation.
On his part, Mzee Moi said that he had received the news about his son’s death with shock and disbelief. He also said that he was proud to be the father of the deceased.
“I am honoured that God chose me to be Jonathan’s father. Jonathan from an early age was a man of the earth and it came as no surprise that later in life his two greatest passions were rallying and farming," he said as quoted by Standard.