Don’t punish leaders questioning use of public funds: Senate
Police officers put out a fire and remove stones used to barricade roads in Narok town on January 29, 2015 after residents demonstrated over the arrest of their senator and four MPs. Deputy President William Ruto will Wednesday host Narok leaders at his Karen offices to solve the political crisis in the county. PHOTO | GEORGE SAYAGIE |
What you need to know:
- Public Accounts Committee says elected leaders have a constitutional right to carry out an oversight role.
The Senate Public Accounts and Investment Committee on Saturday challenged the government to stop frustrating leaders who are questioning use of public funds as controversy over the control of millions of shillings from the world’s famous Maasai Mara Game Reserve intensified.
The committee chairman, Boni Khalwale, said elected leaders have a constitutional right to carry out an oversight role in demanding to know how revenue generated from the game reserve is spent.
“The leaders were interrogating an issue of public interest. The government should restrain itself from suppressing voices out to demand for proper accountability of public resources,” Dr Khalwale told the media on Saturday at Parliament buildings.
Narok Senator Stephen Ntutu, Johana Ngeno (Emmurua Dikkirr), Patrick Ole Ntutu (Narok West), Moitalel Ole Kenya (Narok North) and Korei Lemein (Narok South) had to spend a night in the cells sparking protests in Narok County, after they were arrested on Wednesday.
Dr Khalwale said the protests in Narok over the arrest of the legislators could have been avoided if the government had complied with the law.
He challenged Interior Secretary Joseph Nkaissery move to ban the demonstrations saying it was a breach of their rights as the constitution provides for picketing.
He said Major General (Rtd) Nkaissery and the Acting Inspector-General of Police Samuel Arachi should tell Kenyans why they allowed security personnel to disrupt a peaceful demonstration in the county instead of providing security.
“The charges levelled against the legislators should be dropped. Arresting them in the first place amounts to intimidation of leaders.
“This is meant to ensure leaders don’t address the monster of corruption,” said Dr Khalwale.
Narok Governor Samuel Tunai is engulfed in a tug-of-war with a section of the county residents led by the legislators who want him out of office for allegedly mismanaging funds from the game reserve.
The Senate is investigating the matter after Senator Ole Ntutu sponsored a petition before the House where one of the aggrieved residents from the county claims that the governor has been using companies that he has interests in to collect revenue from the reserve.
However, the governor told the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday that he had long ago resigned from the Mara Conservancy, which manages the game reserve on behalf of the county.
He also said that the company had stopped deducting its commission upfront before submitting the rest of the revenue collected in a month to the county.
This is after the Controller of Budget Agnes Odhiambo made it clear that all funds collected and received from the national government must be deposited in the county fund at Central Bank and approval sought from her office before any expenditure.
