Thursday, October 31, 2024 – The Law Society of Kenya (LSK) has voiced its opposition to the Supreme Court’s ruling on Monday, which overturned the Court of Appeal’s decision to quash the Finance Act 2023.
In a statement on Wednesday, LSK
President Faith Odhiambo noted that in upholding the impugned provisions of
the Finance Act 2023 as constitutional, the Court went to great lengths to
demonstrate why, in its view, the issues surrounding public participation in the
Act were not compelling.
“We respectfully disagree
with the approach taken by the court. The expeditiousness of the legislative
process cannot override legitimate expectation and public interest, nor can
Parliament be exempt from the need to justify its decisions under the guise of
legislative processes not constituting administrative actions,” Odhiambo
said.
The Supreme Court’s ruling came
after a consolidated appeal concerning the legislative process that led to the
enactment of the Finance Bill, 2023 into the Finance Act, 2023 following
Presidential assent on June 26, 2023.
On July 31, 2024, the Court of
Appeal declared the Act entirely unconstitutional, null, and void, citing
inadequate public participation.
The Kenyan DAILY POST
