Senators are pushing a strong plan to ensure governors properly account for how county funds are used, after several leaders repeatedly failed to appear before Senate committees. The move comes as lawmakers seek to safeguard billions of shillings meant for county development.
The strategy focuses on stricter measures for governors who ignore summons, including higher fines, possible arrests, and withholding of funds from non-compliant counties.
Lawmakers are also calling on investigative agencies to act against misuse of resources.
Senate Majority Leader Aaron Cheruiyot said some governors continue to ignore invitations from the County Public Accounts Committee to explain how public money is spent.
“Certain county governors have repeatedly failed to honour invitations and summons issued by County Public Accounts Committee to appear and respond to matters relating to financial management, accountability, and the use of public resources allocated to their counties,” he said.
He warned that ignoring summons undermines the Constitution and weakens the Senate’s oversight role, while eroding trust in public institutions.
“If you choose to waive the right to appear, it means you agree with the Auditor-General’s findings. The next step is to direct the EACC to recover the money and the DCI to arrest those who have misappropriated public resources, then move on to the next financial year.”
To reinforce accountability, senators want amendments to the Parliamentary Powers and Privileges Act and the Public Audit Act. One of the main proposals is to increase fines for non-compliant officers from Sh500,000 to Sh5 million.
Migori Senator Eddy Oketch said decisive action is needed to stop the growing trend of disregarding accountability rules.
“If we do not intervene, these governors are developing a habit of looking us in the eye and telling us that corruption is acceptable, as long as they can buy their way out or influence senators,” he said.
Tana River Senator Danson Mungatana suggested governors who fail to comply should be held in police cells in Parliament until they pay the Sh5 million fine.
“If we make this pain felt directly by these governors, we can stop the drainage of public funds,” he said.
Narok Senator Ledama Olekina supported the tougher penalties, proposing that the law include fines up to Sh5 million and up to five years in prison.
“Currently, penalties are about Sh500,000. We want to increase them to Sh5 million and include up to five years in prison,” he said.
Senators are also considering requiring counties to get clearance from the Clerk of the Senate before any funds are released by the Controller of Budget, to tighten financial oversight.
County Public Accounts Committee chair Moses Kajwang’ said governors must be accountable for public resources.
“Accountability is non-negotiable. Governors must be accountable,” he said.
The proposals come amid rising tensions between governors and Senate watchdog committees, with some county leaders citing harassment, intimidation, and political targeting for skipping hearings.
Senators insist that defiance threatens public funds and undermines oversight.
Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei said repeated absence from hearings breaches governors’ duty to account for allocated resources.
“Some county bosses have repeatedly failed to honour invitations, contravening their constitutional and statutory duty to account for funds allocated to their counties,” he said.
