A petitioner has moved to the Senate to challenge the decision by county governments to use external law firms to represent them in court cases.
The petitioner, Laban Omusundi, an executive director of Grassroot Civilian Oversight Initiative, wants the regional governments to instead use the services of county attorneys.
In the petitioned tabled before the Senate Committees on Devolution and Intergovernmental Relations and the Committee on Justice and Legal Affairs, Omusundi argues that the use of private law firms has seen counties spend excessively.
The petition therefore, wants the Senate to restrain county governments from hiring private law firms for court representations.
“Over billions of taxpayers’ money are spent on law firms for court representations, despite the existence of county government attorneys, established under the County Government Act, who are already funded to perform this role,” Omusundi argues.
Supporting Omusundi’s claims, Senator Richard Onyonka, who sits on the County Public Accounts Committee (CPAC), confirmed the financial strain caused by legal fees.
“I am fortunate to sit in CPAC, and indeed counties have pending bills on legal fees amounting to over 50 billion,” said Onyonka.
The petition also wants the Senate to address the issue of administrative misconduct.
Omusundi argues that some court cases arise from deliberate administrative decisions, implying potential corruption where public officials benefit through kickbacks from these law firms.
Omusundi further states that this misuse of public funds undermines the objectives of devolution, which aims to bring services closer to the people, particularly affecting the healthcare sector.
The petition therefore seeks to “restrain county governments from hiring law firms for civil court cases by establishing a legal framework, recall any law that does not prioritize public interest in this context, and implement measures ensuring personal responsibility for administrative decisions leading to court cases”.
Additionally, it has called for any other necessary reliefs deemed appropriate.
Upon deliberations on the petition and consideration of the petitioner’s views, the committee in its first sitting this week, resolved to invite relevant stakeholders to submit their perspectives on the matter.