A lobby group known as ‘Tunza Mtoto Coalition Kenya’ has filed a petition in the high court, challenging Governor Johnson Sakaja’s feeding program called ‘Dishi na County’ for students enrolled in public primary schools in the county. The coalition argues that the program is illegal, as education is a function of the National Government.
Janet Muthoni Ouko, the Executive Director of Tunza Mtoto Coalition, filed the suit, claiming that Governor Sakaja and President William Ruto did not sign any documents to transfer the National Government’s roles to the County. The petition argues that no legal notice was published authorizing the transfer of powers and functions related to primary schools to the County Government.
Ouko, who previously served as the County Education CEC for Nairobi, has asked the court to issue conservatory orders to halt the release and spending of funds allocated to the school-feeding program. She argues that the program, known as “Dishi na County,” is an illegal expenditure on a function not within the jurisdiction of the devolved government.
According to Ouko, the county has allocated approximately Ksh1.7 billion to the program, which she claims will be unlawfully spent on a function that falls under the responsibility of the national government. She further argues that Governor Sakaja launched the program without proper public participation, challenging the legality of his decision.
“The governor erred in launching the school feeding programme. That is not a mandate of counties; rather it is the national government’s role,” read the petition.
The lobby group has deemed the matter urgent, pointing out that the Education CS recently met with head teachers from primary schools for a briefing on the school feeding initiative, indicating that the respondents are moving forward with the program. They are requesting a priority hearing of the application to prevent a miscarriage of justice.
