Groups threaten court action if William Kabogo assents to new Finance Bill

Kiambu, Kenya: Interest groups have appealed to Governor William Kabogo not to assent to the Finance Bill 2014 passed by the assembly recently, claiming it does not represent the views of residents.

Kiambu Coordinated Stakeholders Association claimed the bill ignored their memorandum and that of other residents.

Led by association Chairman Kimani Kange'the, the group called on Kabogo to return the bill to the assembly for further amendments.

"If the governor goes ahead and assents to the bill, then we shall move to court to challenge its legality since we feel due process was not followed in its formulation," said Kange'the.

The Finance Bill was unanimously passed last Saturday in a special sitting convened by assembly Speaker Gathii Irungu.

Ahmed Chege, the association's coordinator in the Ruiru sub-county, said the residents were not given enough time to read and air their views on the bill before it was passed by the assembly.

"The residents and other stakeholders were not accorded ample time to read and understand the document to be able to give their informed views on the bill," said Chege.

Sensitive document

The Kiambu chapter of Chamber of Commerce and Industry has also threatened to challenge the bill in court, saying the public was not adequately involved in its formulation.

"We are wondering why residents were given just one day to air their views on the document. Public participation for a sensitive document like the Finance bill ought to have been longer and not just a day," said Dr Thinguri Warwathe, Kiambu Chamber of Commerce and Industry boss.

He said apart from going to court to challenge the bill, they will also be holding demonstrations across the county to register their displeasure over the manner in which the exercise was carried out.

The Budget and Appropriation Committee Chairman Ng'ang'a Muthua, however, dismissed allegations that there was inadequate public participation in the formulation of the bill, saying residents were given ample time to scrutinise the bill and give their views.

"Besides, we have amended the bill to accommodate the interests of everyone. License fees have, for instance, been lowered among many other changes," said Muthua.

According to the bill, expectant mothers will pay Sh1000 to undergo an ultra-sound examination in public hospitals. Tenants living in county houses, on the other hand, will be required to cough Sh2,500 a month from the current Sh700.

If assented to by Kabogo, the bill will replace the Kiambu County Finance Act 2013 which was nullified by High Court early this year due to lack of public participation.