IG Kanja under fire from senators for failing to arrest Isiolo Governor

Inspector General of Police, Douglas Kanja. [Benard Orwongo, Standard]

The Senate County Public Accounts Committee (SCPAC) has re-invited Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja to appear before it to explain why he has not arrested Isiolo Governor Abdi Guyo and presented him before the Committee.

The Inspector General had been scheduled to appear before the Committee on Monday to explain to Senators the circumstances under which the National Police Service had failed to arrest the Governor and produce him before the Committee.

Kanja did not show up for the meeting and instead sent a letter stating that he was scheduled to travel to China on an official visit on the same day as his appearance and requested the Committee to reschedule the sitting to a more suitable date upon his return.

“I had constituted a special team to arrest the Governor and present him before the Committee; apparently, the Governor got wind of it and successfully evaded our dragnet,” said Kanja in the letter to the Senate Committee.

The Committee Chairperson, Homa Bay Senator Moses Kajwang, said the Committee had rejected the letter, dismissing the reasons advanced accusing the Inspector General of appearing to underestimate such an important national matter.

Kajwang said that Governor Guyo is a well-known public figure and that there could be no excuse for the police failing to arrest him and that this was sending the wrong signal to the public that someone can get away with disobeying the law.

“Unfortunately, the impression the Inspector General is creating in the letter is that the National Police Service is clueless, ineffective and powerless; the wording in the letter is not useful at all to the Senate,” said Kajwang.

Isiolo Senator Fatuma Dullo said the Inspector General was contemptuous of Parliament, accusing him of using every available excuse to avoid appearing before the Senate whenever he is required to do so, which raised serious questions about him taking his work seriously.

Senator Dullo appealed to the Committee to convince the Senate to compel Kanja to appear before the plenary and explain why he had not arrested the Governor, who has skipped all the Committee's invitations and summonses for the last year.

The Isiolo Senator pointed out that the Governor was busy campaigning across Isiolo in the company of police officers and that Kanja was not justified in stating that Guyo had escaped the police dragnet, yet he was in the company of the security officers daily.

“This Committee should move the House to compel the Inspector General to appear before the Committee of the Whole, otherwise the Senate risks losing the trust of the people of Isiolo if it fails to act and ensure the police comply with its directive,” said Dullo.

The Vice Chairperson of the Committee, Nandi Senator Samson Cherarkey, supported the proposal to summon the Inspector General before the Committee, stating that they are being taken to task by the public on matters of accountability that people think are not serious.

“Governor Guyo must be summoned because this is pure contempt; he has defied several invitations. We should make him appreciate the importance of respecting constitutional institutions,” said Cherarkey.

Kitui Senator Enock Wambua supported calls to escalate the issue and have the Inspector General taken to the Committee of the whole house so that he can explain why his office was not taking instructions issued by the Senate seriously.

Nyamira Senator Okong’o Omogeni called for caution as he opposed the issuance of summons against the Inspector General and said that if they can confirm that his trip to China is legitimate, the best solution would be to give him another date to appear.

“We have a good working relationship with the Inspector General; taking the route of issuing summons will take the focus away from the real issue, which is the Governors who are running away from accountability,” said Omogeni.

Kajwang acknowledged the concerns raised by members and directed that the issues surrounding the challenges facing the County Government of Isiolo and those of the Inspector General should be isolated and not mixed.

“We reiterate that the Inspector General must appear before this committee and explain why he has failed to arrest the Isiolo Governor and if there are any challenges he is facing, he should come and explain to us,” said Kajwang.

The Committee decided that a special report specific to the challenges facing the budgetary issues and accountability specific to Isiolo be prepared and tabled in the House before October.