Petition to dissolve Parliament goes before CJ
By Alphonce Mung’ahu, July 18, 2025The High Court yesterday ordered a petition seeking to compel President William Ruto to dissolve Parliament for failure to implement the two-thirds gender rule to be placed before Chief Justice Martha Koome.
The ruling, delivered by Justice Lawrence Mugambi, referred the case filed by Margaret Toili, Eddah Marete and Agnes Ndonji to the Koome to empanel a Bench to hear the matter after finding that the case raises serious constitutional issues that cannot be determined by one judge.
Notably, in his ruling the judge stated that there was nothing that was preventing him from forwarding the matter to CJ Koome (inset) for empanelment of a bench to hear the petition citing the importance of finding a lasting solution.
Justice Mugambi obsweved that there is an enduring legal question that characterises all these petitions and this is the failure by Parliament to comply with the two-thirds gender rule. The judge noted that the issue of the two-thirds gender rule will keep coming up in every Parliament and it is prudent to resolve it.
“This question, unless resolved, will keep on recurring with every Parliament that comes up after every general election hence it cannot plausibly be argued that it is a matter limited to the present Parliament,” Justice Mugambi ruled.
The court also stated that it is an equally fundamental constitutional question that has occupied the public sphere for a long time now and there is need for an interpretive solution to be provided to guide the country.
Further, Justice Mugambi also noted that the issue cannot be argued that it lapsed when the last Parliament ended its term.
The petitioners have sued the Speaker of National Assembly, the Senate and the Attorney General for the failure to implement the two-thirds gender rule given the results of August 2022 General Elections.
On September 21, 2020, then CJ David Maraga sent an advisory opinion to President Uhuru Kenyatta, whom he advised to dissolve Parliament.
The advisory was due to Parliament’s failure to enact legislation on the two-thirds gender rule in line with Article 27(3) as read with Articles Article 81(b) and 100 of the Constitution.