Poghisho slams Raila over Senate’s oversight role remarks
Former Senate Majority Leader Samuel Poghisho has fired back at former Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s remarks by questioning the Senate’s role in summoning governors.
The former West Pokot senator made his remarks on Wednesday, August 20, 2025, during an interview with a local media house.
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On his part, Poghisho acknowledged that the Constitution granted the Senate limited powers but insisted that oversight of county governments remains a core function.
“I now hear Mr Odinga saying the Senate should not be summoning governors, so what is the role of the Senate?” Poghisho said.
Likewise, while insisting on the constitutional roles of the Senate, Poghisho said that as much as the Senate was given a very narrow role to deal specifically with counties, that includes calling governors to account for how they run county affairs.
“The constitution did not give the Senate much power, and even now, the leader of the majority in the Senate cannot compare to the leader of the majority in the National Assembly. The Senate was given a very narrow role to deal with just the counties,” Poghisho noted.
Raila criticises Senate
Notably, Poghisio’s remarks come amid rising debate over the scope of Senate authority following Odinga’s statement criticising the Senate for grilling governors on county government issues.
Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Raila Odinga criticised the Senate for summoning governors over county issues, saying the mandate falls under the jurisdiction of Members of County Assemblies (MCAs), not the Senate.
The former prime minister called out senators on Monday, August 18, 2025, during the ODM and Kenya Kwanza talks held in Karen, Nairobi.
“Oversight of governors is the responsibility of MCAs, not the Senate. The Senate is wasting governors’ time by calling them to answer questions about roads in counties,” Raila said.
He further warned of a looming extortion trend by the legislators, which is giving the Senate a bad image, adding that legitimate lobbying is being overshadowed by perceptions of extortion.
“There’s lobbying, which is fine, but it’s different. Every committee seems to have a member tasked with ‘Welfare ya Wabunge’; this is tarnishing the image of the National Assembly as well,” Raila remarked.
He urged both Houses of Parliament to respect constitutional boundaries and restore public confidence in legislative processes.
