A Machakos Court has decided that Parliament must write new laws requiring private groups that take government money to tell everyone how they spend it. Justice Francis Rayola Olei ruled that any private organization using public funds must explain its spending to the public through laws Parliament will create.
This case started when Paul Lihanda filed against the East African Development Bank and others back in May 2023. Lihanda argued that under current law, the Kenyan government could pay money from the national fund without Parliament saying yes first. He said this gave the Finance Cabinet Secretary total control over public money with nobody watching, which breaks good government rules.
Lihanda asked the court to step in because he felt the system wasn't open or fair. The current law stops Parliament from checking what happens with this money. He also said laws about Kenya's dealings with the regional bank changed without anyone making sure they followed the constitution or asking what regular people thought about it.
The Finance and Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretaries tried to defend themselves by claiming a committee watches over money given to the regional bank. The judge threw out this defense, saying it wasn't true. He pointed out that regular government expenses like debt payments and salaries come from the consolidated fund, but EADB money doesn't fit in this category.
Judge Olei agreed with Lihanda that part of the EADB Act wrongly lets the Finance Cabinet Secretary take public money without Parliament looking over their shoulder. The judge said this goes against basic rules for handling public money and breaks good government principles. The current system has no real checks to make sure money goes where it should.
The court worried that public money might be wasted or stolen without proper oversight. The judge ordered the Finance Cabinet Secretary to show records of all payments made to EADB since 2014. These records must reach Parliament within 60 days for review.
The court also said Section 2 of the EADB Act breaks the constitution but gave everyone 12 months before this ruling takes effect. This gives Parliament and the Attorney General time to fix the law with better rules that follow the Constitution.
This case started when Paul Lihanda filed against the East African Development Bank and others back in May 2023. Lihanda argued that under current law, the Kenyan government could pay money from the national fund without Parliament saying yes first. He said this gave the Finance Cabinet Secretary total control over public money with nobody watching, which breaks good government rules.
Lihanda asked the court to step in because he felt the system wasn't open or fair. The current law stops Parliament from checking what happens with this money. He also said laws about Kenya's dealings with the regional bank changed without anyone making sure they followed the constitution or asking what regular people thought about it.
The Finance and Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretaries tried to defend themselves by claiming a committee watches over money given to the regional bank. The judge threw out this defense, saying it wasn't true. He pointed out that regular government expenses like debt payments and salaries come from the consolidated fund, but EADB money doesn't fit in this category.
Judge Olei agreed with Lihanda that part of the EADB Act wrongly lets the Finance Cabinet Secretary take public money without Parliament looking over their shoulder. The judge said this goes against basic rules for handling public money and breaks good government principles. The current system has no real checks to make sure money goes where it should.
The court worried that public money might be wasted or stolen without proper oversight. The judge ordered the Finance Cabinet Secretary to show records of all payments made to EADB since 2014. These records must reach Parliament within 60 days for review.
The court also said Section 2 of the EADB Act breaks the constitution but gave everyone 12 months before this ruling takes effect. This gives Parliament and the Attorney General time to fix the law with better rules that follow the Constitution.
