Charity Ngilu, the immediate former governor of Kitui and a former land cabinet secretary, begged the Senate Committee during her appearance that she was unable to raise the Ksh 500,000 that the committee had fined her for not showing up after multiple sermons.
Despite being summoned repeatedly, Charity Ngilu composed herself to explain why she was unable to appear before the committee. She claimed that the first summon she received alerted her to a WhatsApp message, but she was unable to view it because her WhatsApp is crowded with messages from her constituents.
The second message she received from the Senate clerk was an informant text message. She chose to call the clerk back after seeing it, and after the clerk gave her an explanation of the sermon, she made plans to appear before the Committee.
By choosing not to answer an earlier summons, the Committee had already determined that she had disregarded the Senate Committee; consequently, they fined her Ksh 500,000 for her failure to appear before the Committee. She later defended herself, telling the Committee that she is unable to raise 500k because she is unemployed as a result of her current status as an ousted governor. She made a heartfelt plea to the Committee, outlining her current financial situation, stressing her unemployment, and explaining that she has not paid it because it was a requirement for her to appear before the Committee.
The committee members laughed at this, not believing her and wondering what she was saying. She continued by saying that since she is the one who is more familiar with her financial difficulties, she was being serious when she spoke.
A seasoned politician, Charity Ngilu has held numerous positions as a public servant. She has held an office ever since she entered politics, and this is the only regime in which she has not held one.
By Newshub