A high court judge has issued an order to suspend a gazette notice that raised the charges for various government services. The petitioner who filed the case argues that the hike was unfair and arbitrary.
The government’s move to hike the fees for services such as applying for national IDs and passports has been halted by the High Court.
Justice L.N Mugambi granted a court order to suspend the gazette notice dated November 6th, which had announced new charges for a number of government services.
The order was issued after a petition was filed by Dr. Magare Gikenyi, who challenged the legality of the gazette notice. Dr. Gikenyi claims that the government did not consult the public or follow any formula before increasing the cost of the listed services.
He also says that the hike will affect young Kenyans who need IDs to access job opportunities.
“That from the foregoing, this action of the respondents will lead to inter alia loss of public confidence and outright abuse of political power to the detriment of many other young Kenyans in the county,” the petition states.
The case will be heard on November 29, 2023 for further directions.
According to the gazette notice signed by Interior Cabinet Secretary (CS) Prof. Kithure Kindiki, the fee for the standard 34-page passport application had risen to Ksh.7,500 from the previous Ksh.4,500.
A 50-page ordinary passport would cost Ksh.9,500, up from Ksh.6,000, while a 66-page ordinary passport would cost Ksh.12,500, up from Ksh.7,500.
The gazette notice also introduced a fee of Ksh.1,000 for first-time ID applicants, who used to get the documents for free. The replacement of lost IDs would also cost Ksh.1,000, a tenfold increase from the current Ksh.100.
