The Senate has penalized Trade Cabinet Secretary Lee Kinyanjui with a Ksh500,000 fine after he failed to appear before a parliamentary committee as required.
The decision was made by the Senate Standing Committee on Trade, Industrialization and Tourism, which had summoned the CS to present a detailed progress report on the rollout of County Aggregated Industrial Parks (CAIPs) nationwide.
Committee members, led by Tana River Senator Danson Mungatana, stressed the importance of accountability, arguing that officials in the Executive must treat parliamentary summons with seriousness.
Lawmakers also raised concerns about the implementation of the industrial parks, pointing to discrepancies between funds released and actual work completed on the ground.
Uasin Gishu Senator Jackson Mandago noted that oversight visits revealed troubling trends, where counties that had received up to 80 percent of allocated funds had only completed between 10 and 20 percent of the projects.
Read More
Further concerns were raised over some county governments allegedly spending national government allocations without contributing their agreed share of funding, contrary to established guidelines.
Senators emphasized that strict adherence to standards is essential in the establishment and operation of the industrial parks, noting that this would ensure quality production, eliminate inefficiencies, and protect public interests.
Previously, the committee had asked the Ministry to submit a comprehensive report covering feasibility studies, Environmental Impact Assessments, governance structures, and operational plans for the CAIPs.
It also sought clarification on whether counties had opened special purpose accounts at the Central Bank to manage both national and county contributions.
Following his absence, Kinyanjui has now been directed to appear before the committee on May 14.
This comes weeks after KWS Director General, Erustus Kanga, was put on the spot after repeatedly failing to appear before it.
In a session on Wednesday, April 15, the National Assembly of Kenya Committee on Cohesion and Equal Opportunities, chaired by Mandera West Adan Yussuf Haji, expressed frustration over Kanga’s absence from three consecutive sittings.
Kanga had been expected to appear at Bunge Tower to respond to concerns surrounding a human-wildlife conflict incident reported in Kisima Location in Samburu County.
Lawmakers said they were prepared to question him on the increasing cases of such conflicts, which have resulted in deaths, injuries, and damage to property.
According to the committee chair, the KWS boss had reached out informally to explain his absence but did not follow through with an official written response as required.
"The DG called me and explained why he would not attend, but I asked him to do so formally in writing, which he has not done," he said.
Members of the committee did not hide their dissatisfaction, with Luanda MP Dick Maungu accusing the Director General of disregarding parliamentary authority.
"The Committee should recommend his arrest and have him brought before us, as he has ignored our invitations for the third time," he stated.
Maungu further pointed out that parliamentary Standing Orders empower committees to take action against individuals who fail to honour official invitations.
"The Committee should impose a fine of Ksh500,000 on the DG for failing to attend sittings as required by law," he added.
The committee chair confirmed that a formal summons will be issued to compel Kanga’s attendance, warning that failure to comply will attract financial penalties.
"I want to remind the DG that any fine must be paid from his own pocket, not from public funds," he said.
