Former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga. [Photo/The Star]
Former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga has questioned the legality of the recent government ban on the importation, sale, and use of shisha in the country.
In a post appearing on his Twitter handle, Mutunga observed that Health Cabinet Secretary Cleopa Mailu may have overstepped his mandate in announcing the ban which has received a mixed reaction from Kenyans.
“The chances are that the CS has not consulted the AG on his constitutional and legal powers to announce such a ban,” read the tweet in part.
The former CJ seemed to question the CS motives in his post which read, “for a person who does not believe that the right to health is a public good this ban smirks of hypocrisy and dictatorship.”
The Director of Medical Services Jackson Kioko told Capital News that the ban which took effect on Thursday was informed by the negative social and health effects of smoking shisha.
CS Mailu based his Legal Notice on Chapter 242 of the Public Health Act, which confers powers to the Cabinet Secretary powers to come up with regulations for the prevention of diseases in Kenya.