A Senate committee has issued a warrant for the arrest of Kakamega governor Wycliffe Oparanya for refusing to honour summons to answer audit queries.
The queries arise from the revenue and expenditure account of the county for the 2014/15 financial year.
The Public Accounts and Investments Committee (PAIC) issued the warrant of arrest on Thursday after a consultation with independent commissions, including the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, the electoral commission and the office of the Attorney-General.
Mr Oparanya has filed a case in court challenging the powers of the committee to summon governors. However, the parliamentary legal team told the committee that even though the matter is in court, the judge did not issue orders stopping the Senate from summoning the governor.
“There is no order stopping the Senate from summoning the governor,” said PAIC chairman Anyang’ Nyong’o.
The warrant was issued pursuant to Article 125 of the Constitution, which gives parliamentary committees powers similar to those of the High Court. The Clerk of the Senate will prepare the warrant to be signed by Prof Nyong’o.
The arrest orders will then be presented to the Inspector-General of Police and Director of Public Prosecutions for action — being presented to the committee to answer the audit queries and, if necessary, dragged to court to face criminal charges.
PAYE Tax Calculator
Note: The results are not exact but very close to the actual.
