Governors who snub Senate summons to face the law

The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has warned that governors who fail to heed Senate summons to account for public funds will face the law.

The commission appealed to senators to submit reports for such county bosses to enable it to commence investigations.

“Governors are not immune. We can charge them for breach of integrity issues," said commission deputy chief executive officer Michael Mubea.

He expressed optimism that the commission would find watertight evidence to recommend prosecution.

Mr Mubea said that as State officers, the governors are bound by chapter six of the Constitution on leadership and integrity and declining to respond to parliamentary summons is a breach of the law.

“Failure to appear is unethical. Our country cannot be taken to the dogs, where people don’t obey the law,” Mr Mubea told the Senate County Public Accounts and Investments Committee at Parliament on Wednesday.

SPECIFIC SANCTIONS

Mr Mubea, however, said there is a need to have specific sanctions in the law for those who disregard parliamentary summons to deal with cases of leaders who deliberately frustrate demands to account for public funds.

The committee, which was meeting the government's investigating agencies to deliberate on how they can improve their partnership, expressed fears that corruption had been devolved to counties.

“We feel action should be taken fast so that devolution is not sabotaged by corruption,” Kisumu Senator Anyang Nyong’o said during the meeting.

Those present included Directorate of Criminal Investigations boss Ndegwa Muhoro, Director of Public Prosecutions Keriako Tobiko and Assets and Recovery Agency Director Muthoni Kimani.

Prof Nyong’o said summons issued to governors and county assemblies are ignored because the Judiciary and other government agencies responsible for enforcement frustrate the process.

“We have had cases where counties submit falsified documents to the committee to explain audit queries. Conviction rates on matters of corruption are also minimal,” he said.

UNNECESSARY INJUNCTIONS

The senators and investigating agencies blamed the Judiciary for slowing down efforts to tackle corruption in the country through unnecessary injunctions that compel them to halt investigations, in some cases for years.

Mr Muhoro said the multiagency agency framework on corruption needs to stop blame games and work together to firmly deal with corruption.

“We should not entertain the no evidence at the court level with such a filtering process in place,” Mr Muhoro said.

Ms Kimani appealed to Parliament to be forwarding on time investigations where they suspect property has been stolen or public funds have been deposited in personal accounts or to enable the agency to freeze the accounts before the funds are used or transferred.

Mr Tobiko said his agency is working on a proposal that will see police officers and prosecutors seconded to parliamentary committees to forward relevant information to their offices whenever there was a suspected crime that requires further investigations.