IEBC Tops Agenda as Kenyan Parliament Resumes
The reconstruction of the electoral agency and the entrenchment of the Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) in the Constitution will top the agenda for MPs when the National Assembly reconvenes next month.
National Assembly Clerk Samuel Njoroge disclosed that the House will also address the Budget Process following the Treasury’s tabling of the Budget Policy Statement and Debt Management Strategy Paper on February 14, 2025.
High on the priority list is the reconstitution of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), pending a court ruling that has delayed President William Ruto’s nominations to fill vacant commissioner positions.
“The Speaker of the National Assembly, Moses Wetangula, has instructed that the IEBC reconstitution take precedence once MPs return on February 11, 2025,” said Mr. Njoroge during a workshop for Parliamentary Journalists in Naivasha.
The Kiambu court’s verdict on January 24, 2024, will determine the way forward for the IEBC’s reconstitution. The case, filed by Boniface Njogu, seeks to bar President Ruto from appointing IEBC commissioners. The High Court previously stopped the Selection Panel’s nominees from being forwarded to the President.
The IEBC has operated without commissioners since January 2023, following the term expiry of Chairman Wafula Chebukati and members Boya Mulu and Abdi Guliye. Four other commissioners resigned after the contentious August 2022 General Election.
Meanwhile, draft Bills to embed the NG-CDF, Senate Oversight Fund, and the National Government Affirmative Action Fund (NGAAF) in the Constitution will be finalized and published before Parliament resumes.
“These Bills, alongside the implementation of the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) Report and the Two-Thirds Gender Rule, are legislative priorities,” Mr. Njoroge stated.
The urgency to entrench the NG-CDF stems from a Supreme Court ruling in August 2024 that declared the fund unconstitutional, citing violations of the separation of powers principle. Each constituency currently receives KSh 137 million annually for development projects.
“If the NG-CDF is not operational by July 2, 2026, thousands of students who depend on bursaries will face educational disruptions,” warned Mr. Njoroge.
Calling NG-CDF the “M-Pesa of national development,” Mr. Njoroge emphasized its critical role in rural progress.
“The moment we amend the Constitution to secure NG-CDF, the separation of powers issue will become moot,” he said, acknowledging perennial concerns raised by the Auditor General about fund mismanagement.
ligadwah@businessdayafrica.org