Judge bows out of case challenging MPs’ fund
By Bernice.Mbugua, December 2, 2022
High Court judge, Justice Jairus Ngaah, yesterday recused himself from hearing a petition challenging the National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) Act 2015.
His move followed an application by the National Assembly through lawyers Otiende Amollo and Peter Kaluma who claimed that the judge presided over a Bench that declared 23 laws, among them CDF Act, unconstitutional.
Ngaah (above) was part of a three-judge Bench hearing a case filed by Wanjiru Gikonyo and Cornelius Oduor in 2016 challenging the NG-CDf Act 2015. The other judges are Kanyi Kimondo and Roselyn Aburili.
In August, the Supreme Court declared NG-CDF Act 2013 unconstitutional saying the law allowing MPs to manage funds offends division of revenue and public finance law.
In the current petition, the petitioners challenge NG-CDF Act 2015 and have named the National Assembly, the Senate, the Attorney General, the National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) Board, the Treasury CS and Council of Governors.
When the matter came up for hearing yesterday, the lawyer representing the National Assembly asked Justice Ngaah, who had replaced Justice John Mativo in the matter, to recuse himself since he presided over a matter that had been filed by the Senate against the National Assembly.
Kaluma said in that judgment, the NG-CDF Act 2015 was among 23 other legislations the judge declared unconstitutional for not involving the Senate.