Governors Must Honour Senate Summons Without Fail, Senate Leaders Insist

By Mbungu Harrison

Email, thecoastnewspaper@gmail.com

Senate Deputy Speaker Kathuri Murungi has told governors to appear before the Senate when summoned saying counties have become “incubators of graft” and must be held accountable.

Murungu, speaking during a Senate committee sitting in Mombasa on Friday, April 24, 2026, said the Senate would not relent in its oversight role over county governments.

The Meru Senator, who also chairs the Senate Liaison Committee, insisted that governors were constitutionally obligated to respond to summons for questioning on county affairs.

“Governors must honor Senate summons for grilling without fail,” he said.

The senator accused devolved units of fostering corruption saying the trend undermined devolution and the prudent use of public resources.

“Counties have turned to be incubators of graft and thus governors should be answerable.”

He challenged his colleagues in the Senate to step up their oversight mandate to safeguard public funds from misappropriation.

The deputy speaker (DS) urged committees to remain firm and independent while engaging stakeholders.

“Let us as comitees continue to engage stakeholders without compromising the indipendence of the Senate. We must ensure that the Senate executes it’s mandate as mandated by the law.”

Supporting Murungi’s position, Parliamentary Affairs Principal Secretary Dr. Aurelia Rono said compliance by Cabinet Secretaries has improved significantly and governors should emulate them.

She noted that the appearance rate for CS’s before Senate committees now stands at 58 percent signalling that accountability structures are working.

“No official including governors should fail to attend summons,” she said saying state officers must be held accountable for misuse of public resources.

Senate Public Accounts Committee chair Moses Kajwang dismissed arguments from county bosses who skip sessions saying no one was above parliamentary oversight.

“If CS Musalia Mudavadi can attend Senate summons, who do the governors think they are,” he posed.

The Homa Bay senator vowed not to bow to pressure while discharging his committee’s mandate.

“I will not be intimidated by anyone as I’m just following the law.”

The DS’s remarks come amid heightened tension between the Senate and several county chiefs who have in the past skipped summons or delegated junior officers to appear before Senate watchdog committees.