The National Assembly has annulled a Treasury directive that made it mandatory for all government entities to use the electronic Government Procurement System (e-GPS), ruling that it violates the Constitution and the law on public procurement.

In a unanimous decision on Tuesday evening, the National Assembly adopted the report of the Committee on Delegated Legislation, which declared the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) Circular No. 04/2025 unlawful. The annulment came after the motion was seconded by Leader of Minority, Junet Mohamed.

The committee, chaired by Ainabkoi MP Samuel Chepkong,a said the circular attempted to sidestep parliamentary approval by introducing new procurement rules outside the law.

It argued that the directive contravened Section 77 of the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, which allows entities to submit tenders either manually or electronically.

The committee further stated that the circular conflicted with Articles 2(1) and (2), 10, 27(2), 94(5), and 227 of the Constitution.

These articles cover the supremacy of the Constitution, national values and principles of governance, equality and enjoyment of fundamental rights, the exclusive power of Parliament to make laws, and requirements that public procurement must be fair, transparent, equitable, competitive and cost effective.

“The Circular is in contravention of sections 9 and 77 of the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, Cap. 412C relating to the function of the Authority which do not extend to creating binding obligations and the recognition that tender submissions may be made in either manual or electronic form, and contravention of sections 2, 6, 11, 13, 22 and 24 of the Statutory Instruments Act, Cap 2A relating to interpretation of a statutory instrument, submission of a regulatory impact statement on each statutory instrument, requirement for publication and tabling of a statutory instrument before Parliament, and exercise of powers in making statutory instruments,” the committee report stated.

Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi had launched the e-GPS platform on April 7, 2025 as part of government reforms aimed at improving efficiency, accountability and value for money in public spending.

The system was designed to strengthen transparency and competitiveness in tendering, in line with a directive issued by President William Ruto during his State of the Nation Address in November 2024.

Under the annulled circular, only contracts processed through the electronic portal would have been approved for payment, and existing contracts were required to be registered with the PPRA.

But during debate, Junet Mohamed dismissed the move as illegal, insisting that any shift to exclusive electronic procurement must be anchored in law. “If you want to use electronic means, you change the law. You can’t change the law through a circular. The circular is just a piece of paper,” he said.

Drawing a comparison with a past policy by the Central Bank, he added: “This reminds me of a circular issued by the former Central Bank of Kenya governor that when you want to withdraw over Sh1 million, you have to explain. This is a warning to the Executive that the only body the Constitution has given power to make law is Parliament.”

He urged MPs to throw out the circular immediately so that procuring entities could continue using manual systems without restrictions.