By Abdihakim Siyad
Wajir West Member of Parliament Yusuf Farah has come out strongly in support of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF), emphasizing its critical role in transforming his constituency and warning against its possible abolishment.
Speaking during a development tour in his constituency today, Yusuf said Wajir West had seen little to no meaningful development before the introduction of the CDF fund.
“We have decided as members of parliament to take this matter to the people whether they want to abolish or not and urge to every person to participate in the public participation in my constituency we have never seen any developments before CDF.”
The MP urged his constituents to take part in the ongoing public participation forums, which begin tomorrow, on whether or not the CDF should be scrapped. “ I encourage every resident of Wajir West to raise their voice and participate the process starting tomorrow to whether they want to abolish or not.”
The National Government Constituencies Development Fund (NG-CDF) has faced constitutional scrutiny due to concerns about its alignment with the principles of devolution, separation of powers, and financial management.
The NG-CDF Act 2015 was challenged in court for violating the principles of devolution by potentially encroaching on county government functions and for violating the separation of powers by involving Members of Parliament in fund oversight.
Additional concerns included the Act’s failure to ensure prudent financial management and bypass of Senate consultation which the Supreme Court previously ruled aspects of the fund unconstitutional, leading to calls for its re-evaluation or abolishment.
In response, the government has initiated a nationwide public participation process to gather inputs from citizens before any legislative action is taken.
The exercise, beginning tomorrow, will involve forums across all 290 constituencies, where citizens will share their opinions on the impact and legality of the fund.
Despite the legal and policy debate, MP Yusuf Farah reaffirmed that CDF remains a lifeline for rural constituencies like Wajir West, which often miss out on other development funding.
He called for reforms instead of scrapping the fund entirely.devolution, separation of powers, and financial management.
