This archive report was first published on 27 September 2019.
On September 27, 2019, the High Court in Nairobi delivered a ruling that quashed a petition by activist Okiya Omtatah seeking the removal of Kenyatta's portrait on the new currency.
Omtatah had accused the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and its governor of violating article 231 (4) of the constitution, which prohibits the use of individual portraits on currency notes and coins.
However, the three-judge bench ruled that the case lacked merit, stating that the portrait appears larger than the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) on the banknotes, but forms part of the building's image.
The court also found that CBK carried out extensive, reasonable, and all-inclusive participation, leading to the final design of the currency.
