Homa Bay County, Assembly given 21 days to disclose headquarters project financing

NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct 9— The Commission on Administrative Justice has ordered the Homa Bay County Government and County Assembly to disclose records on the financing and construction of the county’s new headquarters within 21 days, warning that failure to comply could trigger recommendations for criminal prosecution.

The orders place the county’s project approvals, lease-to-own financing arrangement with the County Pension Fund (CPF) and potential long-term financial liabilities under scrutiny following the institutions’ failure to respond to an information request filed by Katiba Institute in March 2025.

In two rulings delivered on October 8, the commission affirmed that both the county executive and the assembly are bound by constitutional and statutory obligations to provide public access to information.

“The County Government must disclose, among other records, approvals for the project, agreements with CPF, and reports detailing financial obligations, including contingent liabilities,” Katiba Institute said.

The County Assembly has separately been directed to provide certified Hansard records, relevant legislation, implementation and financial reports, committee records and supporting documents, subject to lawful redactions.

The commission also clarified that county assembly records are not automatically exempt from disclosure under parliamentary privilege provisions, and that where documents contain legally protected information, only the exempt portions should be redacted.

The orders followed review applications filed by Katiba Institute after the two institutions failed to respond to its request for information submitted on March 12, 2025.

Under the directives, the County Secretary and the Clerk of the County Assembly must facilitate access to the requested records within 21 days. Non-compliance could lead to recommendations for criminal prosecution under Section 28 of the Access to Information Act, 2016.

Katiba Institute Executive Director Nora Mbagathi said the rulings reaffirmed the public’s right to scrutinise decisions involving public resources.

“These rulings reaffirm a fundamental constitutional principle: public institutions must be open and accountable to the people they serve. Decisions involving public resources, including long-term financing arrangements and contingent liabilities, cannot be shielded from public scrutiny,” Mbagathi said.

The institute said the decisions strengthened enforcement of the constitutional right to information and provided guidance for county assemblies across the country by clarifying that legislative privileges cannot be used as a blanket justification for withholding public records.

It urged the Homa Bay County Government and County Assembly to comply fully with the commission’s orders.

The rulings do not, in themselves, establish wrongdoing in the headquarters project.

Rather, they require the two institutions to disclose records that could enable residents to examine the project’s approvals, financing commitments and implementation.