Senator Okiya Omtatah has proposed the permanent relocation of the Kenyan Senate from Nairobi to Busia County as a way of making the county government work.

Speaking on Wednesday, October 8, 2025, during a mashinani sitting at the border county, Omtatah jibed that the development could potentially enhance the workings of the country, which he claims has been largely ineffective.

Dire situation

“Today, as I was walking in town, the people were saying that the senate should not leave Busia because the streets have been swept and the waterways have been unblocked. Some people are saying the senate should move to Busia so that the county functions. It is how dire the situation is in this county,” he stated.

Omtatah termed the development to decentralise parliamentary proceedings as an eye-opening opportunity to the situation in the county.

“I am very happy that the Senate has seen the challenges we face in this county. Most of which are self-inflicted,” he added.

Mistreatment of fishermen

On his part, Siaya Senator Oburu Odinga demanded the protection of the fishermen in the border town from cases of mistreatment and harassment from the neighbouring nation of Uganda.

The veteran senator claimed that some Kenyan fishermen were being forced to consume raw fish after being arrested by the Ugandan authorities.

Also watch: Homa Bay fishermen raise alarm over ravaging water hyacinth on Lake Victoria.

“We have a problem in Lake Victoria. This lake is supposed to be a common user facility. But we have our fishermen who have been arrested and forced to eat raw fish. We need to have a common user facility allowing all fishermen to enjoy these facilities,” he stated.

The foregoing comes days after the Senate Committee on National Cohesion, Equal Opportunity and Regional Integration raised alarm over the harsh and deplorable working conditions faced by officers at the Busia One-Stop Border Post.

The committee noted that despite the facility generating billions of shillings in revenue every year, it had suffered massive neglect.

Challenges at the border

“It is shocking that a facility that collects so much revenue is operating under such poor conditions. Officers are working in the cold, in the dust and in the rain without basic protective gear. We have even been told cases of pneumonia are common among staff because they do not have something as simple as warm fleece jackets,” Senator Mohamed Said Chute disclosed.

The Committee also highlighted the severe infrastructural challenges that have slowed operations at the border.

Senators noted that the main access road is too narrow, forcing officers to clear only one truck at a time, leading to long queues and delays for traders and transporters.