expiration of such time and whether before or after the doing of the
act, and any reference in this Rules to such time shall be construed as
a reference to such time as so extended.”
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10
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20
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The principles are well settled. Under Rule 4, the Court has power to
extend time even after the time has expired like in the instant case but
the applicant must present sufficient reason(s) before Court can
exercise its discretion. Some of the factors the Court considers include
the length and reason for delay, the likely prejudice to the respondent
if the application is granted as well as the importance of the matter in
issue to public administration in general and its effect on the
integration process in particular. See: Appeal No. 1 of 2009: The
Attorney General of Kenya v. Prof. Anyang’ Nyongo & 10 Others.
We have carefully considered the submissions on both sides and the
Rule and principles that guide the Court in determining applications of
this nature.
We must state from the outset that we are not persuaded at all by the
flimsy reasons for the delay advanced by the Respondent’s counsels.
The 45 days should have been adequate for consultations between the
Attorney General’s Chambers and Parliament. Even so, the response
could have been lodged out of time under Rule 10, which permits
documents to be lodged in the Registry out of time, pending
regularization.
While it may be true that the Registrar was on leave, the argument that
the Respondent could not file a response because of that lacks both
logic and merit. First, they should have known that the Registrar’s
office, just like the Attorney General’s Chambers, does not go on leave.
The Court has a Registry that is open and operational during official
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