Reprieve for Governors and State and County officials, as the High Court in Kiambu has barred the Inspector-General of Police from effecting arrests on the basis of instructions or directives issued by the Senate or the National Assembly.

The order arises from a petition filed before the Court challenging, among other issues, whether the Inspector-General can be lawfully directed or instructed by the Senate or the National Assembly in the execution of his constitutional mandate.

The matter is scheduled for highlighting of submissions on 21st April 2026.

This comes a week after Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja pushed back against a move by the Inspector General of Police to deploy officers for his arrest. Sakaja termed the action “unwarranted and unnecessary” and insisting the matter at hand is institutional not personal.

The next day (Tuesday, March 31), Governor Sakaja presented himself before the Senate of Kenya leadership and members of a key watchdog committee, in a move that effectively ended hours of uncertainty following a police search for him yesterday over failure to appear before the panel.

The county boss said his decision to personally drive to Parliament was meant to demonstrate his willingness to engage with Senate committees, even as he called for an amicable resolution of the ongoing standoff between the Council of Governors (CoG) and the Senate.