Honourable no more? Khalwale, Nyamu clash over Senate committee changes
Kenyan Senators Bonni Khalwale and Karen Nyamu engaged in a heated parliamentary dispute regarding the removal of Senator Edwin Sifuna from a committee. The exchange escalated into personal attacks and debates over parliamentary procedure.
Why it matters
The incident highlights ongoing political tensions within the Kenyan Senate and debates over the independence of parliamentary committees.
Senators Bonni Khalwale and Karen Nyamu in Parliament on August 4, 2026. A heated exchange erupted in the Senate on Tuesday after Kakamega Senator Bonni Khalwale alleged that Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna's removal from the County Public Accounts Committee (CPAC) was politically motivated, an assertion nominated Senator Karen Nyamu challenged as unsubstantiated.
Khalwale alleged Sifuna was removed because of his opposition stance and refusal to support the broad-based government, arguing that the decision was politically motivated.
"If the problem of Edwin is that he's supporting the opposition, if that is the crime, why is Wambua still in position and he's also supporting the opposition?" Khalwale posed.
He argued that Parliament and its committees should operate independently without political interference from outside the House.
"Let Parliament function. Let committees work. Let the best among us chair committees," he said.
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