NAIROBI, Kenya – The Senate has initiated amendments to the County Governments Act to clearly define the roles of deputy governors, in a bid to end persistent wrangles with governors and ensure the office contributes meaningfully to county governance.
The proposals, tabled by the Senate Devolution and Intergovernmental Relations Committee chaired by Wajir Senator Mohamed Abass, will compel governors to assign specific responsibilities to their deputies.
Lawmakers argue that the absence of such a requirement has left room for abuse, with some deputies sidelined entirely despite drawing hefty salaries from public coffers.
“The County Governments Act, Cap 265, be amended to impose a mandatory requirement on the Governor to assign specific responsibilities to the Deputy Governor,” the committee’s report reads in part.
Currently, the law only provides that governors may assign duties to their deputies, a discretionary power that senators say has resulted in “inconsistent practices” across counties.
In some cases, deputies have been entrusted with substantial portfolios, while in others they remain idle, fueling waste and political infighting.
The committee noted that making the allocation of executive duties compulsory could create accountability challenges, particularly when deputies are required to act as governors under Article 179(5) of the Constitution. However, it insisted that the cost of leaving deputies without work is unjustifiable.
“Owing to the fact that the Office of the Deputy Governor is financed by public resources, there must be a deliberate assignment of responsibilities to ensure optimal utilisation,” the report adds.
The push to amend the law follows a petition by Japheth Makokha, Executive Director of Tripple The Impact CBO, who argued that first-term governors often avoid assigning duties for fear of being overshadowed by their deputies.
“This usually comes at the expense of the citizens who need effective and efficient service delivery,” Makokha said.
Clashes between governors and deputies have repeatedly made headlines in recent years, from Siaya’s William Oduol to Kisii’s Robert Monda, and the impeachment of former Machakos deputy governor Bernard Kiala.
Senators say such disputes have distracted county governments and eroded public confidence in devolution.
“At the root of these conflicts is the ambiguity in the legal framework governing the role of deputy governors,” the committee observed, warning that continued payment of salaries and allowances to inactive deputies is contributing to the country’s bloated wage bill.
If adopted, the amendment will mark the first significant legal shift in the management of relations between governors and their deputies since the advent of devolution in 2013.
