High Court Declares Kisiang’ani’s KBC-Only Ad Directive Unconstitutional

The High Court has ruled that the government’s decision to direct all public-sector advertisements exclusively to the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) is unconstitutional.

The ruling, delivered virtually on Thursday, March 20, by Justice Lawrence Mugambi, struck down a directive issued in March 2024 by then-ICT Principal Secretary Edward Kisiang’ani, which had required government ministries and parastatals to advertise only with KBC.

Justice Mugambi ruled that the directive violated principles of good governance, equality, and media freedom as outlined in Articles 10, 27, and 34 of the Constitution. The court found that limiting government advertisements to a single broadcaster unfairly influenced the media industry and breached fair procurement laws.

“For the State to make such a fundamental policy shift affecting the procurement of advertising services that exclude privately-owned enterprises is not a mere internal matter to be effected without the involvement of the public, whose concerns must be heard and taken into account before the policy is made,” Justice Mugambi stated.

KBC, Kenya’s state-owned public broadcaster, operates under the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation Act, which mandates it to provide news, educational content, and entertainment nationwide. Kisiang’ani had justified his directive as a strategy to revive the struggling broadcaster and ensure government payments for advertising were made on time.

However, the court ruled that the former ICT PS overstepped his mandate. Justice Mugambi noted that under the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act, Kisiang’ani had no legal authority to issue such a directive, which could only be made by the Treasury Cabinet Secretary, John Mbadi. As a result, the court declared Kisiang’ani’s memo null and void from the beginning.

This ruling marks another setback for Kisiang’ani, who has faced public criticism in recent months. He previously came under fire for canceling Standard Group’s media contract with the Ministry of Irrigation, a move widely seen as retaliation for the media house’s critical reporting.

Kisiangani was yersterday dropped as the Information Communication and Technology Principal Secretary.

Kisiangani has been replaced by Stephen Isaboke who now takes over the ICT docket.