Impeached Siaya DG to know fate next week as Senate convenes special sitting
By Wycliffe Nyamasege, June 23, 2023
Embattled Siaya Deputy Governor William Oduol will know his fate on Monday, June 26, 2023, when the Senate convenes to consider a report on his impeachment motion.
In a gazette notice, Senate Speaker Amason Kingi said the House shall consider the report of an 11-member committee hearing the impeachment motion against the deputy governor from 2:30 pm on Monday.
“In accordance with standing order 33 (5) of the Senate Standing Orders the business specified in this notice shall be the only business before the Senate during the special sitting following which the Senate shall stand adjourned until the 27th June 2023, at 2.30 pm, when the Senate shall continue with its regular session in accordance with the Senate Calendar.”
The senators are expected to vote to save or send the deputy governor home.
Oduol, who was impeached by the Siaya County Assembly on June 8, is accused of spending Sh18 million of the taxpayers’ money to renovate his office for personal comfort after assuming office in August last year.
An office chair at the centre of the impeachment of Siaya Deputy Governor William Oduol was presented before the Senate committee probing the ouster on Thursday.
The armchair is said to have cost the taxpayers a whopping Sh1,120,000.
The MCAs told the Senate that Oduol spent Sh1.1million to procure a “presidential” chair in disregard of the procurement plan.
The MCAs said the funds would have been channelled to support learners through the county’s bursary programme.
“The county had spent Sh18 million of the taxpayers’ monies for the personal comfort of an individual. We will demonstrate that Sh18 million constitutes 20 per cent of the county’s bursary allocation,” the lawyer for the MCAs Willis Otieno told the House.
“He ignored the County Procurement plan in demanding for the renovation of his office, to make it sound proof and purchase a presidential table and chair.”
On his part, Oduor put up a spirited fight to exonerate himself from four grounds of impeachment levelled against him by the Siaya County Assembly.
Oduol, who took to the witness stand to rebut the accusations, charged that the allegations were scandalous and frivolous and asked the Senate Special Committee to dismiss the allegations.
He told the committee chaired by Elgeyo Marakwet lawmaker William Kisang that he was shocked that his County Executive could procure a seat worth Sh1.12 million and requested a thorough probe on the purchase.
“I am tongue-tied and shocked that we spent Sh1million on such a chair. I did not coerce County Offices to procure the chair. I think the chair is ergonomic and not orthopedic as has been claimed. I was not involved in procurement, valuation and purchase. I asked for the invoice but was not supplied,” Oduol said.
He described himself as a hunter turned hunted for drawing the attention to mismanagement of county resources by Governor James Orengo and his junior staff.