Taskforce report on PBO Act defended

The chairperson of the taskforce that looked into contentious issues around the Public Benefits Organisations (PBO) Act has defended its final report and plans to amend the controversial Act.

Supporting the proposed amendments to the Act, Ms Sophia Noor Abdi said her team felt it should be amended before it is implemented.

A former nominated MP in the 10th Parliament, she dismissed criticism from the civil society organisations and said the report presented to the government reflected the actual views of stakeholders as captured in public hearings conducted around the country.

“In its report that was forwarded to the Attorney General Prof Githu Muigai and to Parliament for legislative action, the taskforce was clear that the Act requires amendments before commencement,” she said.

The PBO Act passed into law in 2013 has never been implemented as the government has never gazetted its commencement date.

Among the key recommendations from the taskforce was that donors and beneficiaries as well as PBOs should be monitored for transparency and accountability.

An accompanying recommendation was that PBOs must disclose the source of their funding and declare how they intend to utilise the same.

A percentage of the funding received by PBOs is also required to be given to an Authority to be established under the Act for purposes of monitoring CBO activities.

The other recommendation contained in the team’s report which was presented to Devolution and Planning Cabinet Secretary Anne Waiguru over a month ago was that national security and national interests should be addressed during the registration and post registration of PBOs.

Ms Noor who is also originator the PBO Bill has confirmed that amendments were proposed to the Act and that they have already been forwarded to the AG and the National Assembly through its Clerk, alongside the taskforce report to inform debate in the House.

“I am acutely aware that unless the PBOs Act 2013 is amended, all gains achieved by the sector over the years will be eroded and the Act will not serve its intended purpose,” she said.

However, civil society groups have opposed and disowned amendment of the Act claiming that it never came up during public hearings which involved development partners and diplomatic missions.

Although they were represented on the taskforce by the NGOs Coordination Board, the NGOs Council, the CSO’s Reference Group and the Interreligious Council the civil society claim immediate amendment of the Act was not part of the recommendations.

The groups have produced a shadow report to support their push to have the Act implemented as it is without amendments and to have the taskforce report released to the public by the Devolution and Planning CS.

The groups say their report is based on the public hearings that were conducted by the government appointed taskforce when it went round the country collecting views on areas of contention in the PBO Act.

In its report, the civil society roots for self-regulation and unrestrained funding argue that PBOs should be allowed to seek and secure funding from any legal source.