Several law firms that represented the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) in cases dating back to 2013 will have to negotiate how to recover Sh4.2 billion in unpaid legal fees , after MPs raised concerns over the ballooning bill.
The National Assembly Justice and Legal Affairs Committee told the electoral commission that it must engage with some of the firms to reach an agreement on how to settle the outstanding bills.
“We will need to have a discussion on some of these bills,” said committee chairman George Murugara.
During a meeting on the supplementary budget, the IEBC informed lawmakers that it has reconciled its pending bills, reducing the total from Sh5.6 billion to Sh4.9 billion, with legal fees alone being reduced by Sh402 million.
The commission’s acting Chief Executive Officer, Moses Sunkuli, told the committee that as of January 19, 2026, total pending bills stood at Sh4,987,566,493, with legal fees accounting for Sh4,273,853,019 and other goods and services at Sh713,713,473.
Mr Sunkuli said that before internal and external audits were completed, pending bills had stood at Sh5.6 billion. The audit process reduced the total by Sh402,500,727.
“The commission has since reconciled its outstanding pending bills, which mainly consist of legal fees and operational expenses from prior elections,” Mr Sunkuli told MPs.
Kibwezi West MP Mwengi Mutuse questioned how the commission managed to reduce over Sh402 million from outstanding legal fees alone, suggesting that the figure might reduce further.
Kibwezi West MP Mutuse Mwengi.
Photo credit: Dennis Onsongo | Nation Media Group
“Within two weeks, you have saved taxpayers Sh402 million. I urge that you be given more time to reduce this further,” Mr Mutuse said. He added that legal firms awaiting payment since 2013 could wait until the 2026/27 budget is passed.
“If someone has waited since 2013, they can wait until July,” he said.
The committee is scheduled to hold a retreat with the commission later this month to discuss pending fees dating back to 2013.
According to an IEBC document tabled before the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee for the 2026/27 Budget Policy Statement (BPS), accrued general election legal fees between the 2022/23 and 2024/25 financial years stood at Sh5.6 billion.
The committee questioned how the figure rose to Sh5.6 billion despite it not being an election year.
“Are you telling us that in one year you incurred legal fees of Sh3 billion, and it is not an election year? We need to engage further on this,” Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo told the IEBC team last month.
Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo.
Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group
The commission warned that failure to settle the bills on time could affect its operations ahead of the 2027 General Election.
“If these pending bills are not settled, they will increase in quantum and constrain operations, including the conduct of the 2027 General Elections,” the commission told MPs.
It also noted that protracted court cases could result in legal fees being taxed upwards of the initial amounts.
According to the Auditor-General’s report for the financial year ending June 2025, the IEBC was allocated Sh3.8 billion for recurrent expenses and nothing for development. During the same period, the commission generated Sh1.3 billion in internal revenue from the sale of electoral maps, voter registers, and the hire of ballot boxes.
