Maraga questions transparency of eCitizen as KFS orders Karura Forest payments be made via platform
Maraga emphasised that decisions affecting public resources like Karura Forest must involve citizens to ensure transparency, proper governance, and protection of constitutional rights.
Former Chief Justice David Maraga has condemned the Kenya Forest Service’s directive requiring all payments at Karura Forest to be made through the eCitizen platform, describing the move as questionable.
Maraga criticised the directive, citing the lack of public participation. He said the decision violates Article 10 of the Constitution, which emphasises citizen involvement in governance.
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Maraga also highlighted concerns over the increase in entrance fees and the platform itself, noting that the Auditor-General had previously raised serious questions about its accountability and transparency.
"The increase in entrance fees and the directive to use the questionable eCitizen - a platform which the Auditor General has raised serious concerns about - puts to question the true intentions of the move by the Kenya Forest Service," said Maraga.
“We, the custodians of the Constitution and our environment, will not stand by and watch this brazen attempt at the destruction of our natural resources,” he added.
Karura Forest, jointly managed by the Kenya Forest Service and the Friends of Karura Forest, has been a vital urban green space for Nairobi residents for over 15 years.
Maraga emphasised that decisions affecting public resources like Karura Forest must involve citizens to ensure transparency, proper governance, and protection of constitutional rights.
The eCitizen platform has recently come under intense scrutiny. Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu, in her March 2025 audit report for the financial year ending June 30, 2024, flagged over Sh1.8 billion unlawfully collected from citizens before January 2023 through convenience fees that violated legal guidelines on administrative charges.
The report also highlighted unreconciled receipts totalling Sh6.3 billion, unauthorised transfers of Sh127 million to private entities, and excess charges above officially gazetted rates exceeding Sh1.8 billion.
In response, Treasury Principal Secretary Dr. Chris Kiptoo said the government fully owns the platform and has all access credentials, assuring that no money has been lost since 2023.
Appearing before the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee alongside Dr. Belio Kipsang (Immigration and Citizen Services) and Eng. John Tanui (ICT), Dr. Kiptoo dismissed the Auditor-General’s findings as “an inaccurate distortion of facts.”
“I want to assure Kenyans no money has been lost,” PS Kiptoo stated. He added that the government had put enough legal and fiscal measures to prevent loss of public funds through the system.
“For many years, almost 10 years, there were no contractual obligations between the vendor and the government, so we have tried to regularise the law,” he noted.
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