Published on: June 29, 2024 12:39 (EAT)
President William Ruto addresses UDA delegates during the party’s National Governing Council conference on October 2, 2023. PHOTO | COURTESY
Registrar of Political Parties Ann Nderitu has
announced allocations to various political outfits in the Financial Year
2023/2024, with the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA) set to pocket the
lion’s share with a disbursement of slightly over Ksh.316 million.
Ms. Nderitu, in a gazette notice published on
Friday, announced that the new allocation of the Political Parties Fund was occasioned
by the second revision of the Supplementary Estimates.
The Registrar had slashed funds allocated to the
political parties in the first revision in January 2024, in which the UDA was
supposed to receive Ksh.237 million.
The opposition Orange Democratic Movement (ODM)
party’s funds were increased from the Ksh.127 million allocated in January to Ksh.168
million in the June allocation.
The Jubilee party has been allocated Ksh.74 million
up from Ksh.55 million, while the Wiper Democratic Movement’s funds shot up
from Ksh.29 million to Ksh.39 million.
The Kenya African National Union (KANU) also
received Ksh.13 million from the initial Ksh.9 million.
“In exercise of the powers conferred by sections
23, 25 and 34 of the Political Parties Act, 2011 and Regulation 6 of the
Political Parties (Funding) Regulations 2019, the Registrar of Political
Parties gives notice that Political Parties Fund (PPF) allocation has been
revised during Supplementary Estimates No. 2 of FY 2023/24 and this has
necessitated review of the distribution of the Fund,” read the gazette notice
in part.
According to the notice, the allocated funds will
be distributed upon receipt from the National Treasury.
The June allocations, despite being increases from
what was initially set out in January, are significant decreases from those of the
Financial Year 2022/2023.
In line with Section 25 of the Political Parties
Act, 95 per cent of the Fund is allocated to the total number of votes secured
by each political party in the preceding General Election and 5 per cent
accounts for the administration expenses of the Fund.
A party may however not receive funding if they
fail to secure at least 5 per cent of the total number of votes in the previous
General Election.
Further, a party will be denied funding if more
than two-thirds of its registered office bearers are of the same gender.
