Osoro Heckled in Parliament
Osoro Heckled in Parliament
Whip for the National Assembly’s majority party, Silvanus Osoro, was heckled and prevented from entering Parliament on Tuesday during a scheduled discussion of the National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NGCDF) allocation in the house.
MPs stopped Osoro as he was about to enter the chambers, presumably to stop him from trying to interrupt the flow of the discourse.
MPs from Azimio and Kenya Kwanza joined forces to protest what they perceived as the national government’s delayed release of CDF funding, bringing Parliament to a standstill.
Leader of the National Assembly Kimani Ichung’wah was also heckled at the meeting as he tried to persuade lawmakers to postpone discussing the issue until Thursday, when Treasury Cabinet Secretary Njuguna Ndungu returns from COP 28.
The MPs, including those from Kenya Kwanza, did not, however, agree with the proposal. Before making their way out of Parliament, where they had begun voicing their dissatisfaction, they began heckling Ichung’wah.
“To the detriment of CDF, the government consistently supports its executive programs. We are essentially stating that until CDF is extended to our schools, all meetings and official business have been put on hold. In a widely shared video, Nyando MP Jared Okello was heard stating, “They have to give money now and not later.”
According to Okello, the majority of the youngsters in his constituency who depend on bursaries for their studies will have to stay at home due to the bursaries situation as it stands.
The Supreme Court held in its decision that the separation of powers theory is compromised by the fund’s existence.
The Supreme Court decided that a fund intended to fulfill the service delivery mandate could only be legally compliant if it is set up in a way that avoids involving legislative body members in the fulfillment of the mandate, no matter how symbolic.
The goal of the CDF, which was developed during the Kibaki administration and approved in 2013, was to bring development closer to the people.
Kenya only had a central government at the time, which limited local growth. But since then, the nation has seen more than ten years of devolution, raising concerns about the need for the CDF.
