Three activists have filed a case challenging the constitutionality of the Nairobi City County Provisional Collection of Revenue Act 2013.
David Otieno, Rajab Walale, Mulialia Okumu and Nairobi County citizen assembly want the court to issue an order declaring Legal Notice Number 3 on the provisional collection of taxes, fees, and charges, levies and penalties order 2019 unconstitutional.
They claim that the county government issued the notice effecting parts of the Finance Bill 2019 before debate by the members of the county assembly at the Nairobi city county assembly.
They argue that notice was issued without observing the relevant procedures of public and stakeholder participation.
“The unconstitutional legal notice that came into effect on July 19, 2019, and pending implementation instruction from the county government place the Nairobi county residents at risk of losing their right to participate on matters of governance of Nairobi City County,” says the activists.
According to the court documents, the assembly on September 6, 2013, passed the Nairobi County Provisional Collection of Revenue Act, which enabled the executive to effect sections of a Finance Bill without going through the complete process of enactment by the county assembly.
On June 28 this year, the Nairobi City County Finance Bill, 2019, referred to as the Finance Bill 2019 was subsequently published in a Kenya gazette supplement for introduction into the county assembly.
Otieno says a month later, a public participation forum on the Finance Bill this year took place at Uhuru Gardens Primary School for Kibra and Lang'ata sub-counties.
He claims public participation forums on the Finance Bill 2019 have been ongoing as from July 30 this year and will end on August 16.
“Members of the public in Nairobi County have a right to participate in matters county governance,” he says.
The activists argue that the legal notice by the county government is tantamount to denying the public the right to participate in public forums on the Finance Bill 2019 that started on July 30.
They now want the court to declare that the process of gazetting and introducing the Finance Bill 2019 to the public for their views is flawed.
