NAIROBI, Kenya – Outspoken Saboti Member of Parliament Caleb Amisi has urged the government to retain the National Government-Constituency Development Fund (NG-CDF) at the constituency level.
Amisi, elected on an Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party ticket, noted that the NG-CDF plays a vital role in advancing equality by enhancing security, education, and infrastructure in underprivileged communities.
The lawmaker stated that when I assumed the Saboti Parliamentary seat through the 2017 General Election, his constituents were complaining that they had never received the bursaries from the NG-CDF kitty.
“Money meant to improve infrastructure in schools was just going to the principals. This is why, for the first time, classrooms have been built across the constituency during my time in office. This is because I drew a plan and shared it with the NG-CDF committee, and it was accepted,” he explained.
NG-CDF is a fund established to support community-identified, grassroots development projects in each constituency, such as education and health facilities, by allocating a percentage of national government revenue. It was first introduced in 2003 and aims to reduce poverty, enhance regional equity, and ensure that development benefits a wide cross-section of the community.
As an MP, Amisi said that to be effectively ranked as someone who manages a constituency well, he needs to examine the NG-CDF and how it is handled.
“I am not the manager, but I believe if you craft your structures very well in a manner that you reach every polling station, everyone is going to get the bursaries. If you look at every school that exists in my constituency, there is a CDF-funded project,” Amisi added.
Why the Supreme Court in Kenya quashed the NG-CDF kitty
In September 2024, the Supreme Court in Kenya declared the NG-CDF unconstitutional as it violates the principles of devolution, and the NG-CDF Act has caused a duplication of roles.
The Court went ahead to give the government until June 30, 2026, to wind up all programs under implementation by the NG-CDF.
But while speaking on Citizen TV on the morning of Monday, September 8, 2025, the youthful MP observed that the NG-CDF is not about MPs, as their role is only oversight.
“When I took over as an MP and found NG-CDF in existence, of course, most people think that the CDF and bursaries go into MPs’ accounts for distribution, but this is a wrong misconception. What I observed in my constituency regarding the polling stations was that initially, people would go to Kitale town to look for the CDF offices in search of bursaries, which I found to be tiresome for my constituents. So, I decided to share a structure with the committee because NG-CDF has a committee,” Amisi explained.
How the NG-CDF kitty has transformed education in Saboti
Serving his second term in office, Amisi revealed that he established a structure whereby, in every polling station, people were able to access it, as they are typically located in schools and villages.
“So, I looked at 52 polling stations of Saboti, and today applications are made right there at the polling stations. In fact, the data they are looking for, I have for my constituency. In my constituency, I can refer those in need of a bursary to the Ministry of Education, as I have the necessary data. I use this data to determine what is available, what we can offer, and who is in secondary, tertiary, TVET, and university settings, and we can allocate resources accordingly. It is a mere Sh150 million, which can only account for a mere 40% of the bursary, but it is very efficient,” Amisi further said.
According to Amisi, currently, if you ask anyone in Saboti who has benefited from the president, governor, MCA, and senator bursaries, you will be told that no one has.
“This is because the NG-CDF funds are being managed well. The committee is working well,” said the legislator.
While echoing Amisi’s sentiments, his Kacheliba counterpart, Titus Lotee, stated that there was public participation and that Kenyans expressed a need for the NG-CDF to continue.
“I think it is important to give an MP a task because the law that provides an MP with the responsibility to be able to look at NG-CDF in the manner that the public perceives as the money for a member of Parliament is in the role of an MP of oversight,” Lotee said.
Why the Kenyan education sector should prioritise education
He indicated that an MP oversees government projects in the constituency.
“So, NG-CDF becomes one of the government projects that is within your constituency. Whether we are patrons as per law or not, we are actually patrons by virtue of the people who elected us,” Lotee explained.
Amisi further stated that education must be a priority for this country and accessible to all, to attract the international market, foreign investment, and a global flow of income.
“The government should not give excuses for delays in the capitation. When you planned the financial year, you already knew that this is the number of students in every school and this is the amount collected or anticipated to be collected by the Treasury,” noted Amisi.
The MP questioned why there should be a delay when he government already knows what is required.
“As a country, we have committed to offering this percentage of the amount of money to various schools across the country. This is our commitment to the people; it is a commitment to the millennial development goals. It is not possible if you are a serious government,” Amisi added.
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