MP Salasya Throws Gauntlet at Raila Over NG-CDF ‘Thinks he Owns This Country’
Mumias East Member of Parliament, Peter Salasya, has openly challenged former Prime Minister Raila Odinga to exercise his influence and intervene in the ongoing parliamentary push to amend the Constitution. The proposed amendment seeks to entrench key funds, notably the National Government Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF), into the Constitution of Kenya.
Speaking on Saturday, May 3, Salasya issued a pointed statement urging Raila Odinga to stop the planned public participation phase for the constitutional amendment process, which is scheduled to commence on Monday, May 5. The lawmaker’s comments appear to be a direct response to Raila’s recent criticism of efforts by Parliament to alter the Constitution in favor of the NG-CDF.
“If Raila thinks he owns this country, let him stop NG-CDF public participation next week. If he is truly another arm of government, let him stop it,” Salasya stated during a public engagement.
His comments reflect growing tensions surrounding the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2025—a proposed piece of legislation that seeks to embed the NG-CDF, the Senate Oversight Fund, and the National Government Affirmative Action Fund (NGAAF) into the country’s supreme law.
Despite the controversy, Salasya expressed full confidence that the Bill will be approved by Parliament. He reiterated his commitment to ensuring that the NG-CDF is constitutionally safeguarded, regardless of opposition.
“We are going to put NG-CDF in the Constitution whether he likes it or not. This is the plain truth. We are going to show Raila he is an ordinary citizen with one vote, and the majority have said NG-CDF is here to stay,” he declared.
Salasya’s challenge comes in the wake of remarks made by Raila Odinga during a funeral service in Thika on Friday, May 2. While addressing mourners at the service of Dr. Francis Ngaru, Odinga voiced his disapproval of Parliament’s ongoing efforts to anchor the NG-CDF within the constitutional framework.
“Parliament should not try to change the Constitution because of narrow ends. The Constitution that we brought here brought devolution; devolution needs to be defended,” Raila said.
The former Prime Minister’s remarks underscore a broader concern among a segment of political and civil society leaders that recent legislative proposals could undermine the spirit of devolution—one of the central pillars of the 2010 Constitution.
The Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2025, is sponsored by Ainabkoi MP Samuel Chepkonga and Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo. It proposes the formal entrenchment of the NG-CDF and other development-related funds into the Constitution. Proponents argue that doing so will ensure predictable and secure funding for development initiatives across all constituencies.
However, the push for constitutional entrenchment comes in the wake of a 2024 ruling by the High Court, which declared the NG-CDF unconstitutional. The court held that the fund, in its current form, violates the principle of separation of powers and undermines devolved governance structures. Critics have long argued that the fund allows Members of Parliament to engage in executive functions by directly managing development resources, contrary to their legislative mandate.
The NG-CDF was originally established to address disparities in development and poverty alleviation by allocating at least 2.5 percent of the national government’s annual revenue to each constituency. Over the years, it has been used to finance infrastructure projects, bursaries, and other community-based initiatives.
Despite its tangible benefits, the fund has also attracted criticism over issues of transparency, mismanagement, and duplication of roles with county governments. Raila Odinga and other devolution advocates have warned that institutionalizing the NG-CDF in the Constitution could entrench parallel structures that threaten to weaken the counties.
In response to the parliamentary initiative, the Katiba Institute and other civil society organizations have moved to court to challenge the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2025. The petition filed argues that the proposed amendment is constitutionally redundant and that the funds it seeks to enshrine contravene the foundational principles of the 2010 Constitution.
According to the Katiba Institute, entrenching the NG-CDF and similar funds into the Constitution would distort the balance of power between the national and county governments and reintroduce centralized control over development resources—an approach that the 2010 Constitution sought to dismantle through devolution.
As the debate intensifies, the upcoming public participation phase will be a crucial battleground. It offers citizens, stakeholders, and civil society actors an opportunity to weigh in on a legislative proposal with far-reaching implications for Kenya’s governance framework.
The standoff between Parliament and critics of the proposed amendment reflects deeper tensions about the nature and direction of constitutional reforms in Kenya. On one side are those advocating for stronger oversight and equitable development through centralized funds. On the other are devolution supporters who caution against legislative maneuvers that could reverse gains made since the promulgation of the 2010 Constitution.
It remains to be seen whether political leaders, civil society, and the judiciary will find a common ground or whether this clash will culminate in a prolonged constitutional standoff. What is clear, however, is that the future of the NG-CDF and its place in Kenya’s constitutional architecture is once again under intense national scrutiny.
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MP Salasya Throws Gauntlet at Raila Over NG-CDF ‘Thinks he Owns This Country’
