Katiba Institute and civil society partners have filed a case in the High Court to stop the National Assembly from pushing the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2025.
The Bill, sponsored by MPs Otiende Amollo and Samuel Chepkonga, aims to entrench three Funds into the Constitution—NGCF, SOF, and NGAAF.
Katiba Institute argues the Bill is unnecessary because all three Funds already exist and function under current laws. They say creating new constitutional provisions will duplicate structures, waste public resources, and go against good governance.
They also claim the Bill touches on protected parts of the Constitution—such as the roles of Parliament and the structure of devolution. As such, they argue it must go through a referendum as required by Article 255.
However, Parliament has never passed a referendum law, even though the Constitution has required it since 2010. Katiba Institute says this legal gap makes the amendment process flawed and unconstitutional.
They are asking the court to stop public participation set to begin on May 7, block any funding related to the Bill, and prevent the President from signing it into law.
The petition also seeks a declaration that the Bill is unconstitutional and that no further constitutional changes should happen without a referendum law in place.
Katiba Institute insists constitutional amendments must be taken seriously. They warn that Parliament is using the process to entrench political interests instead of protecting the Constitution’s integrity.
