Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika has officially crossed the line from political stonewalling into criminal evasion, forcing the Senate Standing Committee on National Security to order her immediate arrest.
By repeatedly treating mandatory legislative summonses as optional invitations, Kihika has chosen to shield herself from scrutiny rather than answer for a horrifying cocktail of alleged state-sponsored violence and environmental poisoning threatening her own county.
Her refusal to appear before the committee is not just a snub to Parliament; it is a direct insult to the family of a missing constituent and the thousands of citizens consuming toxic food under her watch.
Shielding Brutality: The Disappearance of Brian Odhiambo
The core of the Senate’s inquiry is a nightmare scenario that any responsible leader would rush to address: the alleged forced disappearance of 33-year-old fisherman Brian Odhiambo at Lake Nakuru National Park.
The Incident: On January 18, 2025, Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) rangers arrested Odhiambo for alleged illegal fishing.
*The Witness Accounts: Witnesses watched in horror as Odhiambo was beaten, stripped of his clothes, and loaded unconscious into a KWS vehicle.
The Cover-Up: Rangers claimed he magically “escaped into the wild,” yet investigators found absolutely no official record of his arrest or escape.
Six KWS officers are now on trial for his abduction.
While Nakuru burns with protests and a grieving family demands answers, Governor Kihika has chosen silence and absence, frustrating both the Senate committee and the petitioners who elected her to protect them.
Brian Odhiambo who went missing on January 28, 2025 after he was allegedly forcibly taken by KWS officers who were patrolling Lake Nakuru National Park. (Photo: X/Courtesy)
Toxic Waters and Corrupt Science
Kihika’s accountability dodge extends deep into a compounding public health disaster.
Lake Nakuru’s fish a primary local food source and economic driverhave been officially declared unfit for human consumption.
The Findings: Rigorous testing by the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) confirmed the fish are heavily contaminated with untreated sewage and lethal heavy metals, including arsenic, lead, chromium, and nickel.
Instead of tackling this toxic crisis head-on, county and state machinery attempted a bureaucratic ambush.
The Kenya Fisheries Service (KeFS) and KWS tried to slip a unilateral fish sampling report past the Senate, entirely excluding independent stakeholders and petitioners.
Recognizing the deception, Committee Chairperson Senator Fatuma Dullo rightfully threw the report out, ordering the entire exercise redone under strict, transparent conditions.
The Price of Arrogance
Governor Kihika’s failure to show up implies a dangerous worldview: that a governor is above the law, above the Senate, and above the basic human rights of the people of Nakuru.
By invoking legal measures to have the police physically drag the Governor to Parliament Buildings, the Senate has drawn a line in the sand.
Accountability is not a request, and leadership cannot be conducted from the safety of a fortified county office while constituents disappear and the environment is poisoned.
