African Woman and Child Feature Service

The passing of the Political Parties Bill in Parliament yesterday is a landmark event on a process that began sixteen years ago.

“We are happy with the outcome and this also brings to an end the absence of solid constitutional provisions governing parties and elections in Kenya,” says a CAPF member. 

Coalition for Accountable Political Financing (CAPF) is a coalition of governance focused civil society organizations  in Kenya that has been working with Parliament, politicians and various stakeholders since 2004 with the aim of promoting dialogue and building support for political party financing reforms among political parties,  as well as the  general public. 

When multiparty democracy was introduced in Kenya in 1991, there was a glaring resource disparity between the then entrenched ruling party and a struggling opposition. This undermined the development of opposition political parties, which had no access to state resources and therefore could not effectively organize their activities and access their constituents. 

Indeed, on four separate occasions, between 1993 and 1999, Parliament unanimously resolved that political parties receive funding from a consolidated fund, but there was no follow-up. At the time, KANU had access to state resources and enjoyed an unfair advantage over opposition parties and was therefore reluctant to implement the resolution. 

Because of the impact parties have on Kenya’s political system and the important role they ought to play in governance, considerable attention has been focused in recent years on how to make political parties more national oriented, promote their commitment to justice, democracy and good governance and increase their responsiveness to their constituents. 

When the Bill becomes law, it is our sincere hope that it will promote ethical and transparent mobilization and utilization of financial resources by political parties in Kenya and that there shall be room for parties that are stable, vibrant and accountable to the people of Kenya.