CS Kindiki Declares Friday Public Holiday to Mark Idd Ul Fitr

The Ministry of Interior on Wednesday, April 19, declared Friday, April 21 as a public holiday to mark Idd-Ul-Fitr. 

The declaration was announced through a special gazette notice signed by Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki. 

"In exercise of the powers conferred by section 2 (1) of the Public Holidays Act, I declare Friday, 21st April, 2023, shall be a public holiday to mark Idd-ul-Fitr," the notice reads in part. 

The notice is expected to provide businesses and individuals a chance to reorganise their operations ahead of the public holiday.

Earlier on Wednesday morning, social media was awash with fake notices, suggesting that the public holiday would be marked on Monday, April 24.

The reports were largely fueled by the expectation that Idd Ul Fitr would be on Sunday, April 23, which would have seen the national holiday extended to Monday - in line with the Public Holidays Act.

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Idd Ul Fitr is one of the major festivals celebrated by Muslim faithful. It is a day that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadhan.

This year, Ramadhan started on Wednesday, March 22, in Kenya, after the sighting of the crescent moon.

The holy month of Ramadhan lasts 29-30 days depending on the sighting of a new crescent moon.

Moon sighting has in the past been controversial as Islamic scholars and leaders differ on areas that should be used as a reference for the new moon.

Weather and climatic changes often mean that in some instances, the sighting of the moon across different countries is not uniform.

Some scholars believe the sighting of the moon in any part of the world should mark the end of the fasting period. Others believe that such sightings should happen in Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Muslim world should be guided as such.

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This was the case in 2021, when the moon was reported to have been sighted in Mombasa. However, Kenya's Chief Kadhi, who has the sole mandate to make the pronouncement, insisted that the moon had not been sighted.

The effect was that some clerics marked Idd celebrations a day before the main public holiday that aligns with the Chief Kadhi's pronouncement.