Governors Boycott Senate Summons, Accuse Lawmakers of Harassment and Extortion

By : Mweru Mbugua 

The Council of Governors (CoG) has announced that county chiefs will no longer appear before the Senate County Public Accounts Committee (CPAC), accusing some senators of harassment, intimidation and extortion during oversight sessions

Speaking during a governors’ retreat on Monday, CoG Chair and Wajir Governor Ahmed Abdullahi said governors have been subjected to repeated humiliation whenever they honour Senate summons

“The Council of Governors notes with great concern the continuous and escalating extortion, political witch-hunt, harassment, intimidation and humiliation of governors by certain senators when they appear before the Public Accounts Committee of the Senate,” Abdullahi said

He added that the council has resolved that governors will boycott CPAC sittings until the matter is addressed through structured engagement between the Senate leadership and the Council of Governors

However, Abdullahi noted that governors will continue to honour summons by the Senate County Public Investments Committee (CPIC), but only once in every audit cycle. Governors appear before the committee to discuss investment-related matters, including county funds, municipal projects and public hospitals

CoG Chief Whip and Tharaka Nithi Governor Muthomi Njuki said the dispute is not with the Senate as an institution, but with a few individual lawmakers

“We are very specific that CoG has no issue with the Senate; we have a problem with four senators, and they know themselves,” Njuki said

The standoff comes after the Senate Public Investments Committee summoned the governors of Nandi, Laikipia, Lamu, Murang’a and Tharaka Nithi counties for failing to appear and respond to audit queries

Committee chairperson Senator Godfrey Osotsi expressed disappointment after receiving last-minute letters from some governors indicating they would not attend, while others failed to respond altogether

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Senator Eddy Oketch called for firm action against governors who ignored the summons, noting that the committee is bound by constitutional timelines to compile and table its report in the Senate

Meanwhile, Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei dismissed the governors’ retreat as unconstitutional and a waste of public funds, arguing that the money should have been used to address the ongoing drought crisis in northern Kenya. He claimed the retreat was aimed at strategising how to avoid responding to audit queries

Despite the standoff, the Council of Governors insisted it remains committed to accountability and prudent use of public resources, while warning that oversight must be conducted lawfully, ethically and without abuse of office

The retreat also discussed the worsening drought situation in arid and semi-arid lands (ASAL), with governors urging the national government and other stakeholders to scale up interventions to prevent loss of lives and livestock