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MPs now turn to Appellate Court to reinstate CDF
The National Assembly during a past session.
Members of Parliament are pinning their hopes on the Court of Appeal to reinstate the National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF), which was declared illegal by the High Court.
The High Court ruled that the NG-CDF was unconstitutional due to its violation of the separation of powers principle and its failure to consult the Senate during the law-making process.
“The National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) as amended in 2022 and 2023 is hereby declared unconstitutional and all its projects, programmes and its activities shall cease to operate on the stroke of midnight on June 30, 2026,” the bench ruled.
The National Assembly, however, has fought the decision at the Court of Appeal, which is expected to deliver its judgement on February 6, 2026.
Save it from extinction
Led by its in House legal team headed by Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo, George Murugara (Tharaka), Peter Kaluma (Homa Bay Town) among others, the National Assembly hopes the Court of Appeal will save the Fund from extinction as from June 30 this year.
Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo.
While giving an update on the issue in Parliament, Dr Otiende told his colleagues he is optimistic that "the legal errors done by the High Court will be corrected".
“I believe we will persuade the court to correct errors of law and facts made by the lower court. We pleaded to render its judgment in time, noting that the fall of the hammer as rendered by the High Court is midnight of June 30, 2026,” Dr Amollo said.
“We reminded the court that it would be a grave injustice if the budgeting process were to begin before the judgment was rendered. We are happy to report that the court listened and set the judgment for February 6, 2026 which is within a reasonable time,” he added.
The Rarieda lawmaker further said: “We want to see this Fund prosper. This is a national Government Fund, duly administered independently by the committees. The NG-CDF does not help individual Members of Parliament, it helps their constituents.”
Mr Murugara said Parliament had done its bit and it's now up to the court to make a decision.
"We may not say what the outcome would be, because no lawyer can give certainty in any case. We did the best we could,” he said.
Suba South MP Caroli Omondi said as the House awaits the court’s decision, Parliament should proceed and factor in allocations to the Fund for the 2026/2027 Financial Year.
“No Fund has delivered so much for so many, yet has been misunderstood by many for the wrong reasons, like the National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF). The NG-CDF allocation should be factored in. We should not drop the ball,” Mr Omondi said.
The lawmakers have been at loggerheads with Judiciary as various court rulings have declared NG-CDF illegal since it’s not anchored in the Constitution
The CDF Act was enacted in 2003 and later amended in 2007. It provided that the government was to set aside at least 2.5 percent of the last audited revenue, as approved by National Assembly, to be channelled to the Fund for use at the constituency level.
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