Small political parties petition MPs over ‘unfair’ funding formula
The coalition wants the National Assembly to urgently amend Section 25 to guarantee that all registered and compliant parties benefit from the Political Parties Fund.
A coalition of small political parties has petitioned the National Assembly to amend Section 25 of the Political Parties Act, 2011, in a bid to secure fair access to the Political Parties Fund.
The group, which includes the National Liberal Party (NLP) led by Augustus Muli, says the current funding formula unfairly locks out more than half of Kenya’s 91 registered parties despite their full compliance with legal requirements.
More To Read
- KFS to manage private and community forests under new law
- Guinea reverses opposition parties' coverage ban ahead of key referendum
- ODM threatens to sue Treasury for withholding Sh12.6 billion from Political Parties Fund
- Executive undermining Parliament’s independence, says Kivutha Kibwana
- Petition to move Jomo Kenyatta’s remains from Parliament put on hold
- CJ Martha Koome pushes back against criticism over parliamentary interference
“Out of 91 registered political parties, only 47 are funded. More than 50 parties, despite having offices and meeting all compliance requirements, get zero,” Muli said.
The petition seeks to cure the discriminatory funding formula that locks out emerging parties and to entrench genuine multiparty democracy.
The Political Parties Act of 2011 mandates that a minimum of 0.3 per cent of the national revenue be allocated to the Political Parties Fund (PPF), which is administered by the Registrar of Political Parties.
“The 2010 Constitution makes Kenya a multi-party democracy and provides that political parties should receive 0.03 per cent of the national revenue. If this formula was applied, parties would be getting about Sh8 billion, but right now we are only getting 1.4 per cent."
The coalition wants the National Assembly to urgently amend Section 25 to guarantee that all registered and compliant parties benefit from the Political Parties Fund.
They have also called on the National Treasury to allocate sufficient resources in line with the constitutional requirement.
The petition comes at a time when President William Ruto has nominated John Cox Lorionokou as the new Registrar of Political Parties and Agatha Wanjiku Wahome as Assistant Registrar.
The nominations were announced by State House spokesperson Hussein Mohamed.
This is after Anne Nderitu, the outgoing Registrar, took the commissioner job at the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
Top Stories Today
