Governors seek talks with Senate over oversight committee appearances

The Council of Governors (CoG) has formally requested an urgent engagement with the leadership of the Senate following concerns over the conduct of Senate oversight committees during governors’ appearances.

In a letter addressed to Senate Speaker Amason Kingi, CoG Chairperson Ahmed Abdullahi said governors were troubled by what they described as escalating cases of harassment, intimidation, political witch-hunts and alleged extortion by some members of the Senate County Public Accounts Committee (CPAC).

The concerns were raised during a recent Council of Governors’ retreat themed “Re-positioning the Council to Effectively Respond to the Prevailing Political Environment while Strengthening Service Delivery across Counties.” According to the Council, the retreat was aimed at reviewing performance, refining priorities for the remainder of the term and strengthening engagement with key stakeholders, including the Senate.

While acknowledging the Senate’s constitutional mandate to summon governors and conduct oversight, the Council argued that the manner in which some committees exercise this authority falls short of the constitutional intent and undermines cooperative intergovernmental relations.

As a result, the Council resolved that governors would suspend appearances before the County Public Accounts Committee until the concerns are addressed through structured engagement between the Senate and the CoG leadership.

The governors also raised concerns over frequent summons by the Senate County Public Investments and Special Funds Committee, saying multiple appearances within a single year to discuss county investments, special funds, municipalities and health facilities were disruptive.

The Council resolved that governors would henceforth appear before the committee only once per audit cycle to comprehensively respond to queries.

In the letter, the CoG said the purpose of the request was to formally bring the resolutions to the attention of the Senate leadership and to seek an engagement framework that would guide interactions between governors and key Senate oversight committees.

The move sets the stage for a potential standoff between the two levels of government, coming amid heightened scrutiny of county expenditure and governance.

The Senate has previously maintained that its oversight role over county governments is constitutionally mandated and essential for accountability in the use of public resources.