More Senators have opposed a proposal to amend the law to shield governors from prosecution while in office.
Ledama Olekina (Narok) and Isaac Mwaura (Nominated) rejected the proposal floated by Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei, arguing such action would help in abetting looting at the counties.
Mr Cherargei, who is also Senate Legal Affairs and Human Rights committee chair, said a Bill to amend the Constitution to extend to governors the immunity from criminal and civil proceedings that the president enjoys would be tabled.
Cherargei claimed prosecuting sitting governors was killing devolution.
“This Bill should not be mistaken to mean that we condone corruption. All we want is for services at the counties to continue uninterrupted even when governors are being investigated,” said Cherargei.
But Senator Olekina said this was not democracy and allowing such kind of change was like telling the governors to continue looting. He said Cherargei would not get his vote if he chose to go that direction.
“There is need to change this country. Cherargei’s proposal will not get my vote,” Olekina said.
Governors, he said, were becoming indisciplined and it was time to tame them. It will not be in order to have a change of the law aimed at protecting governors in office from prosecution.
If such a change happens, the governors will not be answerable to the people and will feel superior.
“It will not be in order to do that; it is like telling them to go ahead and loot,” he said.
Senator Mwaura said he, too, was not for the Bill. He added that as Senate, they cannot support corruption, and governors must be subject to the law.
“I do not agree and senators cannot be seen to be supporting corruption. Let governors face the law," Mwaura said.
And some North Rift residents said it was embarrassing that some senators were out to reverse gains that had been achieved in protecting devolution and service delivery to the electorate.
“Some senators want to vie for the post of governor in the 2022 General Election and now want to bend the law to suit their selfish interests instead of putting the country first. This is a letdown,” said Nicholas Koech.
Mr Koech said the Senate should assess whether it was serving the interests of the people or selfish benefits.
Elijah Lagat, a former MP for Chesumei in Nandi County, said governors implicated in any wrong doing should be ‘dealt with immediately’ while in office.
