Amnesty International Kenya Executive Director Irungu Houghton has resigned from the Panel of Experts on Compensation of Victims of Demonstrations and Public Protests, distancing himself from an appeal filed against a High Court ruling that declared the panel unconstitutional.
In a resignation letter sent to Panel Chairperson Makau Mutua, Houghton said his decision takes effect immediately and follows President William Ruto’s move on January 5 to extend the panel’s mandate by 180 days.
The extension came despite a December 4, 2025 judgment by the Kerugoya High Court that invalidated the panel and faulted its legal standing.
“The 4 December 2025 ruling declared the Panel unconstitutional and affirmed that the statutory and constitutional responsibility properly rests with the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR),” Houghton wrote, stating that the decision had stripped the panel of both legal foundation and public trust.
The High Court ruled that the KNCHR, not a panel appointed by the Presidency, is the body mandated by the Constitution to guide and process compensation for victims of police violence and protest-related harm.
Houghton said remaining on the panel after the court ruling would amount to “normalising an arrangement that the Court has expressly found to be unconstitutional” and would weaken the role and independence of the KNCHR.
He further revealed that he had been wrongly included as one of the applicants in a December 15 court filing seeking to suspend the High Court ruling, without his knowledge or approval.
“I was neither consulted nor do I support the 15 December application to stay the court ruling,” Houghton said, adding that he only became aware of the appeal on January 8, weeks after it had already been filed.
He described the listing of his name as “erroneous, not in good faith and contrary to the National Values and Principles of Governance under Article 10 of the Constitution.”
Houghton noted that he had already stepped back from active participation in the panel on September 11, 2025, while waiting for the court’s decision. Although listed as an interested party in the case, he said he chose not to enter appearance and instead awaited direction from the judiciary.
He also said the appeal contradicts his public position, including views he expressed in a December 6 opinion piece in the Saturday Standard, where he called for full compliance with the High Court ruling and a transfer of the compensation process to KNCHR.
“I therefore formally disassociate myself from the decision to challenge the 4 December 2025 Kerugoya High Court ruling,” he wrote, stressing that his resignation should not be seen as backing the panel’s legal action.
While thanking those involved for the chance to serve victims of state violence, Houghton said respect for the Constitution and the rule of law must come before political convenience.
“The victims’ families’ cry for accountability, justice and reparations has anchored my personal conscience throughout this journey,” he said. “However, persistent pre-emptive litigation places more obstacles before the victims, their families and the Presidency than it removes.”
He urged the government to use the KNCHR process approved by the court to deliver compensation and restore confidence in public institutions.
Houghton’s departure has exposed growing divisions within the government-backed panel, even as its chairperson has defended the decision to both comply with the court ruling and pursue an appeal, arguing that the two actions can run side by side.
The resignation adds new legal, moral and political pressure on the panel as questions continue to be raised about its continued operation despite a binding High Court decision.
