A Senate committee has summoned Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja after he failed to arrest and present Samburu Governor Lati Lelelit before Parliament, escalating a standoff that now threatens to deepen the contempt proceedings surrounding the governor.
The County Public Accounts Committee (CPAC) is seeking to have Governor Lelelit answer for contempt of Parliament after repeatedly ignoring summonses to account for billions of shillings allocated to Samburu County during the 2023/2024 financial year.
CPAC chairperson Senator Moses Kajwang’ accused the Inspector General of defying lawful Senate directives and undermining parliamentary authority.
“The Inspector General of Police should appear before this committee within the next seven days to explain why he is unwilling to implement the resolutions of Parliament,” Kajwang’ said while issuing the summons.
Kajwang’ warned that the police cannot operate outside the Constitution or place themselves above Parliament.
“This committee will not tolerate contempt of Parliament by the IG or his failure to facilitate the work of Parliament,” he stated.
The dispute stems from Governor Lelelit’s continued absence from CPAC sessions convened to scrutinise the use of public funds in Samburu County. After several failed summonses, the committee fined the governor Sh500,000 and ordered him to appear before the Senate on December 4, 2025.
When the governor failed to comply, CPAC wrote to the Inspector General on December 9, instructing him to locate, arrest, and present Lelelit before the committee on December 18.
In a response dated December 18, the Inspector General informed the committee that police officers were unable to trace the governor’s whereabouts, making it impossible to carry out the arrest.
Unconvinced, CPAC issued fresh instructions directing the police chief to establish the governor’s location and produce him before the committee on January 26. The Inspector General neither responded to the directive nor produced the governor as ordered.
In a subsequent letter to the committee, Governor Lelelit said he could not attend the CPAC session because he was scheduled to attend the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) National Governing Council meeting at State House, chaired by President William Ruto.
However, Samburu Senator Steven Lelegwe, who sits on CPAC, said he personally saw the governor at State House during the meeting.
“The governor is giving excuses because he is not ready to appear before this committee. In fact, he does not want to appear,” Lelegwe said.
Senator Kajwang’ dismissed the explanations offered by both the Inspector General and the governor, stating that the letters did not shield Lelelit from contempt proceedings.
CPAC members further accused the police chief of betraying his oath of office by failing to support Parliament’s constitutional oversight role.
Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna warned that the Inspector General’s inaction had weakened parliamentary authority and set a dangerous precedent.
“We should summon him and deal with this firmly. This is pure contempt,” Sifuna said.
The Senate committee now expects Inspector General Kanja to appear and explain his conduct, as pressure mounts for accountability over both the governor’s defiance and the police’s failure to enforce parliamentary resolutions.
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