JOHANNESBURG – The Kenyan High Court is to rule on Friday as to whether the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) violated the country’s constitution by including the statue of founding president Jomo Kenyatta on the new generation bank notes.
The ruling will come only days to the expiry of the CBK deadline of September 30th for return of the old Ksh1,000 bank notes that are set to be withdrawn from circulation, the East African reported.
Activist Akiyah Omtatah has accused CBK and its governor Patrick Njoroge of violating Article 231 (4) of the constitution that prohibits the use of individual portraits in currency notes and coins.
Furthermore, he asserts that the designs of the new generation currency note and coins were not subjected to public participation in line with the requirements of the Kenyan Constitution.
On June 1, CBK announced that it was withdrawing Ksh1,000 ($10) notes from circulation effective October 1 to deal with counterfeits and money laundering.