Senate Speaker Amason Kingi has defended the Senate’s constitutional authority to oversight county governors, saying the mandate is firmly anchored in law and cannot be ceded.
In a statement Wednesday, Kingi strongly dismissed the claims by some leaders that such a role belongs exclusively to County Assemblies.
He stated the constitution is clear that the Senate’s role extends beyond allocation of resources to ensuring accountability in the management of national revenue disbursed to the counties.
“In the course of the last week, statements have been made questioning the constitutional mandate of the Senate to oversight Governors. But Article 96 is explicit that the Senate represents counties, protects their interests, and exercises oversight over national revenue allocated to county governments,” Kingi stated.
He said unless the Constitution is amended, the Senate’s oversight role is not negotiable or discretionary.
“The Senate cannot yield or concede. It is a solemn trust invested in the Senate, which we shall continue to discharge faithfully and without fear or favor,” he said.
"It is a solemn trust invested in the Senate, which we will continue to discharge faithfully and without fear or favour."
He further invoked Article 125 of the Constitution, which empowers either House of Parliament or its committees to summon any person to provide evidence or information.
Kingi also pointed to a series of judicial pronouncements affirming the Senate’s oversight role.
In High Court Petition No. 334 of 2016: Kyalo Kamina vs Senate and Others, the court held that county governments cannot audit themselves and that accountability must come from a body outside the county level, namely the Senate.
Similarly, in Supreme Court Petition No. 24 of 2019 between the Senate and the Council of Governors, the apex court ruled that the Senate provides the “second and final tier of oversight” after County Assemblies, noting that prudent management of public finances requires both arms to work in tandem.
“The purpose of the Constitution is to entrench good governance, accountability, and transparency at both levels of government. That purpose cannot be achieved if either Senate or County Assemblies seek to monopolise oversight,” the Supreme Court held.
The Speaker’s remarks come amid heightened debate over the extent of Senate powers as more Governors face accountability questions over billions of shillings allocated to counties.
Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga has in two separate occasions reiterated his stance that the role of oversighting the governors should be left to Members of the County Assemblies (MCAs).
He said Senators have been wasting time summoning governors to appear before them and respond to questions about roads, some of which are solely undertaken by the National Governments.
“Oversighting Governors is the responsibility of MCAs, not the Senate. Senators are wasting the governor's time, to come and answer questions about roads,” Raila said.
