Senate watchdog committees have fired a warning at ‘corrupt’ governors and other county officials, saying they are going after them.
The development comes even as the panels disclosed a plan to manoeuvre a court hurdle that could have seen governors get away with serious accountability questions.
The panels revealed that the Senate — which has the technical know-how on matters of devolution — will soon start releasing the performance of counties.
Homa Bay Senator Moses Kajwang’ and his Vihiga counterpart Godfrey Osotsi sent the warning after they were re-elected as the chairpersons of the two dreaded oversight committees.
They are the Senate County Public Accounts Committee and Senate County Public Investments and Special Funds Committee.
Kajwang’ said his committee is going to be ruthless in tackling graft in the devolved units, adding that they are going after governors and county officers who embezzle and misuse public funds.
“We are going to terrorise thugs and thieves in the counties. We are going to be ruthless with the governors and county officials,” Kajwang’ said.
Kajwang further said his committee will soon have a candid engagement with the leadership of the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission on taming graft in the counties.
The tough-talking chairman said President William Ruto and First Lady Rachel Ruto at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport on Thursday his committee has referred more than 100 cases to the commission for investigation but no or little action has been taken.
The cases relate to embezzling funds and other financial management.
In apparent resolve to fight graft in counties, Kajwang said his committee has devised a clear plan to beat a court ruling that barred Parliament from considering audit reports more than three months after they are received from the Auditor General.
“We will bring all the reports to the House in one motion and we will move the House Business Committee to allocate even one week for debate and go through the reports and make general recommendations.”
“Then we will direct the CPAC to invite the governors to deal with specific recommendations.”
"We will allow the House to tell us to go and arrest this governor, and the House will tell CPAC to go and implement its resolution and that resolution can be achieved by inviting individual governors,” he added.
