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Governors have threatened to ignore summons by the Senate County Accounts Committee (CPAC), alleging extortion, political witch-hunt, harassment, intimidation and humiliation by the legislators whenever they are invited to shed light on queries raised in regard to accountability.
These are serious allegations that cannot be swept under the carpet. They must be investigated speedily to establish whether indeed the lawmakers are misbehaving or whether it is the governors who have devised an excuse to eschew accountability.
Granted, most of the allegations against the lawmakers are no new. Take extortion, the most serious of the allegations, for instance.
Legislators in this and past Parliaments have been accused of taking bribes, including in the toilets, in order to pass contentious motions, most of which are against public interest. Lately, former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has repeatedly alleged that the State House bribed legislators with millions of shillings to impeach him.
Although such allegations have never been confirmed, they have nevertheless left the image of Parliament badly dented. As such it is hard to defend lawmakers whenever they are accused of taking bribes. But now there is a chance to establish the truth about the rot in Parliament.
The governors must surely be aware of those who have been extorting, intimidating and humiliating them. Specifically, Tharaka Nithi Governor Muthomi Njuki has blamed four of the nine CPAC members for the misconduct.
Governors are educated people and understand the law well. They know what do when they are extorted, intimidated and humiliated. Vowing to ignore the Senate’s summons is not one of them.
Any extortion attempt or intimidation should be reported to the parliamentary authorities and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC). That is what Muthomi and other aggrieved governors should do. Threatening to boycott the Senate without taking such action can only be interpreted by the public as a ploy to escape parliamentary scrutiny.
Governors cannot decide when, or how many times they appear before the Senate if the need to question them arises. They must always be ready to be questioned over their spending of taxpayers’ money.
Some of the governors are not innocent. Successive Auditor General reports have revealed a very high level of wastage within counties that must be explained. Moreover, there have been other complaints of mismanagement within counties that cannot be ignored. Some governors have even been impeached for, among others, embezzling public funds. Governors must not run away from accountability.
But even as we await investigations into this matter, we urge legislators to act with wisdom. When Vihiga Senator Godfrey Osotsi, a CPAC member, reacted to the governor’s threat by saying the Senate “will withhold funds from the governors and see who suffers”, he inadvertently vindicated claims of intimidation by the governors. He also failed to understand that denying counties money would hurt citizens, not the governors.
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By Editorial