THE PUBLIC GATHERINGS BILL 2026 CANNOT BE LAW UNTIL THE NEXT CABINET.
INTRODUCTION
It was reported that the Public Gatherings Bill 2026 had been adopted into law, pending presidential assent. This short article argues that the Bill cannot become law till the cabinet is appointed. The second argument is that even if the Bill went through operationalizing will be problematic in the absence of a sitting minister.
CHALLENGE OF OPERATIONALIZING THE BILL
Section 1 of the Public Gathering Act, 2026, provides that “this Act shall come into operation on the date appointed by the Minister by statutory instrument.”
In this regard, the author’s understanding is that the Public Gatherings Bill cannot come into operation unless the minister promulgates it by Statutory Instrument, indicating the commencement date of the Act. The cabinet having been dissolved on 15 May 2026 and there being no ministers in office, it is argued that the Bill cannot become law until the next cabinet is appointed.
CHALLENGES RELATED TO SEEKING REMEDIES WHEN ENACTED.
Section 15 of the Bill provides that “15. (1) A person aggrieved with a decision or action of an authorised officer under this Act may, within fourteen days of the decision or action of an authorised officer, appeal to the Minister”
The author contends that this provision creates a problem for appeals whenever issues arise during the dissolution of parliament, as there shall be no minister to appeal to.
In any case, the author identifies several slippery provisions that grant authorised officers excessive discretion and are prone to abuse. In this respect, section 4 of the Bill gives the authorised officer powers to intervene in public gatherings and order participants to disperse on the authorised officer’s own grounds. This is likely to be a source of various grievances requiring speedy resolution, and the absence of ministers in office during such critical times as the election period is likely to cause problems for victims seeking to challenge the decisions of authorised officers.
CONCLUSION
Premised on the foregoing, the author understands that the Public Gatherings Bill may not be operationalised ahead of the August 2026 general elections unless the next cabinet is appointed. Further, there is a need to revisit provisions relating to appellate channels, given that ministers are not always in office.