

The Senate Labour Committee has summoned National Treasury CS John Mbadi and his Co-operatives counterpart Wycliffe Oparanya over their failure to appear before the committee.
Kenya Railways Corporation managing director Philip Mainga has also been summoned.
The three leaders failed to appear before the Labour Committee for a meeting scheduled on Monday, August 4, 2025.
“The Senate Labour Committee has officially summoned the leaders after they failed to appear for the scheduled meeting held on Monday, August 4, 2025,” the Senate said in a statement on Monday.
They are expected to appear before the Committee on Wednesday, August 20, 2025, to address various labour-related issues.
Senators have severely criticised the CSs for skipping their invites to respond to their questions.
Among the CSs who have run into trouble with the senators for their no-show are Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, Rebecca Miano (Tourism), Deborah Barasa (Environment), and Davis Chirchir (Transport).
On May 7, 2025, Mbadi was under fire from Senate leadership for allegedly skipping a scheduled plenary session.
Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna, who also serves as the Senate Deputy Minority Whip, criticised Mbadi, saying his excuse for missing the session lacked merit.
Senate Majority Whip Boni Khalwale also condemned Mbadi for failing to appear before the Senate, accusing him of developing a pattern of disregarding the House.
Mbadi had written to Senate Speaker Amason Kingi on the morning of May 7, informing him that he would not attend the session due to prior engagements.
However, Sifuna argued that the CS should have notified the House well in advance of his absence.
Speaking on the Senate floor, Sifuna emphasised that Cabinet Secretaries must remain accountable to the people’s representatives by honouring invitations to appear before Parliament.
“I refused to watch that interview and switched to the football match because I was expecting him here. The conversations that matter to me from that CS are the ones that happen here,” he said.
“Cabinet Secretaries must notify the House in good time if they are unable to appear. Writing on the same day is absolute contempt and must be called out.”