Kahiga says governors have evidence to back claims in Senate feud
By Cy Muganda, February 10, 2026Nyeri Governor Mutahi Kahiga has dismissed Senate Speaker Amason Kingi’s characterisation of governors’ complaints as unsubstantiated, insisting the Council of Governors (CoG) has evidence to support allegations of harassment by Senate audit committees.
In a video statement posted on the Council of Governors’ X account on Tuesday, February 10, 2026, Kahiga responded defiantly to Kingi’s warning against suspending Senate appearances, saying governors are also elected leaders who deserve respect.
“We have heard today how he has come to threaten us and say such things. We want to say we have evidence to support our claims,” Kahiga stated in Swahili during a press briefing.
Governors won’t be intimidated
The Nyeri governor warned the Senate against attempting to intimidate county chiefs, emphasising that governors are also elected by Kenyans and have mandates to fulfil.
“Let it not be that there is someone who thinks they can threaten us. We too have been elected by Kenyans, and we are working. But it should not be that you address us as if you are our boss. Absolutely not. Do the work you have been given by the Constitution. But do it in a manner that is proper,” Kahiga said.
According to Kahiga, the problem is not oversight itself but the manner in which Senate committees conduct their sessions with county officials.
“But it cannot be that every time you go to the Senate, it becomes insults, it becomes this challenge, that challenge, insults here, insults there. Even yesterday, some were told they would be taken to jail. You are surprised. For whom were jails built? And who here do you see who cannot go to jail and come out?” he said.
The governor emphasised CoG’s willingness to engage in structured dialogue with Senate leadership to resolve the standoff.
“Here we want to support the President. As he said that corruption has penetrated even to the roots. And we want to repeat and say as the Council of Governors, we are ready to sit with the leadership of the Senate. We can discuss and talk and explain the truth,” he stated.
Response to Kingi’s statement
His remarks came hours after Senate Speaker Kingi issued a stern statement dismissing CoG’s allegations and warning governors against suspending appearances before Senate committees.
In his statement, Kingi rejected CoG’s demand for reconstitution of the County Public Accounts Committee (CPAC) based on claims of political witch-hunts, harassment, extortion, and intimidation.
“The Senate further notes, with grave concern, the purported demand by the Council of Governors for the reconstitution of the County Public Accounts Committee, on the basis of claims of political witch-hunts, harassment, extortion and intimidation allegedly involving four unnamed Members of the Committee,” Kingi had stated.
The Speaker emphasised that the Senate’s oversight role is firmly anchored in the Constitution and called on governors to use established institutional channels rather than the media to raise concerns about Senate committee operations.
“While the Senate remains open to structured and constructive dialogue with devolution actors, recourse to public mudslinging and unsubstantiated allegations in the media, unsupported by evidence, is neither appropriate nor conducive to intergovernmental cooperation,” Kingi stated.