Johnson Sakaja on Tuesday, March 31, appeared before the Senate following mounting pressure from law enforcement after an arrest warrant was issued over his failure to honour summons.
The Nairobi Governor’s appearance came a day after police officers camped at City Hall in an attempt to apprehend him and compel his attendance before the County Public Accounts Committee (CPAC), chaired by Moses Kajwang’.
Authorities, led by Regional Police Commander Issa Mohamud, had earlier confirmed efforts to track down the governor.
“We will look for him and do the needful. It is the dignity of the office that he presents himself,” Mohamud stated.
Speaking to the press on March 30, the commander maintained that the operation would continue until Sakaja was presented before the Senate.
“We have been looking for him, and we never got him, but we received information that he might be around. That is why we are here this evening. The work is not finished because we have not taken him to the Senate, but that we will do. We do not tolerate impunity. We have a country to protect.”
Governor Defends Absence
Upon finally appearing before senators, Sakaja defended his earlier absence, attributing it to a directive issued by the Council of Governors. The council had advised governors to boycott Senate summons, citing allegations of extortion by some lawmakers.
“I came to the Senate to meet the leadership and members of the committee. First, I am a law-abiding citizen,” Sakaja said.
He added that he has consistently cooperated with Senate oversight processes, noting multiple past appearances.
“I have appeared before these committees many times—six times this year alone and about ten times last year. I have even responded to audit queries dating back to 2015, including those from my predecessors,” he explained.
Claims of Selective Targeting
The governor also questioned why he appeared to be singled out, arguing that several other county chiefs had similarly failed to honour summons.
According to Sakaja, at least 29 governors had been called to appear before the same committee, with many not complying.
“It is wrong to single out one county or one governor. The drama we are seeing is not fair. The CoG is an institution just like the Senate—let the two institutions resolve the matter collectively,” he said.
Sakaja urged for a structured resolution between the Senate and the Council of Governors to address the underlying tensions that have triggered the standoff.
“I have spoken to the Speaker of the Senate, the Chair of the Council of Governors, and my fellow governors. We need to resolve these issues so that we can be held accountable as required by the Senate,” he stated.
He reaffirmed his willingness to appear before the committee in the future, once the dispute between the two institutions is resolved.
“I have appeared before the committee before and I will continue to do so. All we want is for the issues between the CoG and the Senate to be resolved,” he added.
