Sifuna demands naming of governors inciting others to defy Senate summons
By Cynthia Lodite, March 17, 2026Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna has accused the Council of Governors (CoG) chairman, Ahmed Abdullahi, of threatening governors attending the special Senate Public Accounts Committee summons.
Speaking during the Senate proceedings on Tuesday, March 17, 2026, Sifuna revealed that not all governors refuse to attend the summons; instead, a few, whom he said were misleading other county leaders.
Sifuna explained a scenario where a county governor kept the Senate Public Accounts Committee members waiting because she was on a phone call with the CoG Chair.
According to Sifuna, the governor was being threatened by the CoG for attending the meeting, warning her against attending it, as there would be consequences afterwards.
“We had a situation last week where a governor who chose to attend kept us waiting there because she was on the phone with the Chairperson of the Council of Governors, being threatened that if they proceeded with that meeting, there would be a consequence,” Sifuna explained.
Name them
At the time, the Nairobi Senator asked the Senate Public Accounts Committee Chair, Moses Otieno Kajwang, to produce the names of the leaders inciting other governors against attending the audit meetings.
“Not all county governors are refusing to attend before the Public Committee there are just a few notorious ones…i challenge my chair to give the names of the top five notorious governors; they are the ones inciting other people,” Sifuna stated.
CoG fight with Senators
Sifuna’s remarks come months after governors led by CoG Chairman Ahmed Abdullahi threatened to snub any appearances before a key Senate Audit committee over harassment.
At the time, through the Council of Governors (CoG), the county bosses resolved to keep off the County Public Accounts Committee (CPAC) sessions until their concerns were addressed.
“The Council of Governors notes with great concern the continuous and escalating political witch-hunt, harassment, intimidation, and humiliation of Excellency Governors by certain Senators when they appear before the CPAC committee,” CoG chairman Ahmed Abdullahi said.
Speaking during a two-day retreat in Kilifi, themed “Re-Positioning the Council for Effective Service Delivery in Light of the Political Environment”, the governors insisted that their continued harassment by the committee must end.
“To this effect, the Council has resolved that governors will not appear before the CPAC committee until these concerns are addressed through a structured engagement between the leadership of the Senate and CoG,” Abdullahi declared.