Siaya Governor James Orengo has fired back at the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission boss Twalib Mbarak for suggesting that his county was under investigation over alleged graft.
Orengo, in a strongly worded statement, termed Mbarak’s comment as “reckless, irresponsible, unjustified and legally inexcusable".
Orengo was responding to remarks by the CEO Thursday evening dismissing claims of political motivation in the arrest of former National Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani.
Mbarak had justified the arrest of the former CS as well as the current Marsabit Governor Ali Mohammud in relation to investigations to establish whether Sh8.2 billion was lost when Yatani served as governor in the North Eastern county.
Yatani was arrested but later released on Wednesday.
Orengo repesented him alongside Rarienda MP Otiende Amolo and DAP-K party leader Eugene Wamalwa.
The EACC CEO took issue with Orengo’s appearance as the lawyer for the former CS.
"Yesterday [Wednesday], the noise they made, one of the lawyers there [in the Yatani case] is a governor. We have even focused on his county and we have raised a red flag. You can tell the lawyer-cum-governor that we may end up in his place very soon,” Mbarak said.
But Orengo did not take the insinuation lying down, dismissing the comment as “empty and containing nothing new, except outrageous hyperbole, falsehood and callous sadism".
The governor said arrests have been made in Siaya county before as far back as six years ago "but no prosecutions were made".
Orengo added that he is undeterred in doing his professional practice and governing the expanse county, asserting that he won’t be intimidated.
