The party in an application at the Milimani High Court said it is yet to receive Sh5,109,564,700.53 that is lawfully dully owed to it as provided for under the Political Parties Fund/FILE
NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct 11- The Orange Democratic Movement has lodged a legal bid seeking to compel the Registrar of Political Parties to release Sh5.1 billion owed to it.
The party in an application at the Milimani High Court said it is yet to receive Sh5,109,564,700.53 that is lawfully dully owed to it as provided for under the Political Parties Fund.
The party through its lawyers Julie Soweto and James Orengo, says that the National Treasury, since the Fund was established has failed, neglected and refused to disburse funds equal to or not less than 0.3 percent of the revenue collected by the national government.
“ODM has a right and is entitled under section 25 of the Political Parties Act, to receive funds from the Political Parties Fund established under the Act,” they argued.
ODM and other political parties are entitled to benefit from the Fund.
“The failure or refusal to disburse all the funds due to the political party undermines democracy, the rule of law, and the objectives for which the Fund was established,” Orengo said.
The said Kenya failure to disburse the monies amounts to undermining the Constitution, the sovereign power of the people and democratic governance.
ODM, they said had a legitimate expectation that it shall receive all the Funds due to it from the Fund to enable it project its activities based on its legitimate expectations.
“The next General Election is barely a year away and the applicant’s ability to prepare and participate meaningfully and effectively is greatly affected by the lack of funding,” the party submitted.
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