Kenya’s Court of Appeal has upheld a High Court ruling that declared the government’s housing levy unconstitutional.
The appellate court’s decision means that the deduction of the housing levy from Kenyans’ salaries remains suspended.
The government had argued that the suspension of the levy would lead to a budgetary crisis and job losses.
However, the appellate judges ruled that the public interest lies in allowing the appeals against the High Court ruling to be heard first.
“This is because if the stay sought is granted at the stage, should we affirm the challenged decision, then some far-reaching decisions that will have been undertaken pursuant to the challenged laws may not be reversible,” Justices Lydia Achode, John Mativo and Gatembu Kairu said.
“Public interest, in our view, tilts favour of in not granting the stay or the suspension sought,” they added.
They noted that granting the government’s request for a stay of the High Court’s decision could lead to irreversible consequences if the appeals are ultimately successful.
The court also rejected the government’s claim that it risked being sued for breach of contracts related to the affordable housing project.
The judges pointed out that the government had failed to provide any evidence to support this assertion.
