Senate summons Miano, KWS boss over delayed Amboseli handover to Kajiado

Kajiado Governor Joseph Ole Lenku when he appeared before the Senate County Public Accounts Committee at Bunge Towers in Nairobi on July 6, 2026. [Elvis Ogina, Standard]

The Senate has summoned Tourism Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Miano and Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) Director General Erastus Kanga to explain why a Presidential Proclamation over the handing over of Amboseli Game Reserve to Kajiado County has not been effected.

This is after Kajiado Governor Joseph Lenku was taken to task by the Senate County Public Accounts Committee over Sh4 billion pending bills which he attributed to his administration not being able to reach its revenue targets despite their being a facility that can earn them billions.

Lenku told the Committee chaired by Homa Bay Senator Moses Kajwang that his administration was supposed to take over the management of the Game Reserve as from July 1 this year but so far it had not happened despite President William Ruto officially handing it over to the county.

“We are left wondering what these instruments are that the President handed over to Kajiado County over the ownership of Amboseli Game Reserve, with KWS seeming to have defied the Presidential directive which was to be effective as from July 1, 2026, " said Lenku.

The Governor said that all legal documents had been done by the Attorney General, with the Head of Civil Service being part of the task force that approved the handover of the Game Reserve to Kajiado County, with a ceremony officiated by the President being done.

Kajwang wondered why KWS had failed to effect the changes and asked the Governor to reveal the reasons given to him when he visited the government agency since Amboseli could generate at least Sh3 billion annually as own source revenue to Kajiado County Government.

The Homa Bay Senator noted that Narok County Government was earning more than Sh4 billion annually as own source revenue from the Maasai Mara Game Reserve and that if Kajiado County was given a similar chance, it will be able to earn some extra own source revenue from Amboseli.

“We are summoning Tourism Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Miano together with KWS Director General Erastus Kanga to come and explain why a Presidential proclamation handing over the Amboseli Game Reserve to the Kajiado County has not been effected,” said Kajwang.

Lenku told Senators that Amboseli Game Reserve is 82,000 acres with the Maasai community having donated 1 million acres as the County was to take over the management but the locals were contemplating taking back their land since they felt betrayed by the government.

The Governor said that it is the local community that is feeling the weight of the Game Reserve and the Maasai Community will be seeking to take over what belongs to them since they are not seeing value for the one million acres they donated for a facility meant to benefit them.

Taita Taveta Senator Johnes Mwaruma sought to know what the position of Presidential proclamation in law because he believed that once the President who has executive powers issues a directive it should be effected wondering why the KWS appeared to be defying the directive on Amboseli Game Reserve.

“We should have the Kenya Wildlife Service and the Kajiado County Government before us so that we can know whether they were all involved in the Amboseli Game Reserve handover since it is not clear why that has not been effected to date,” said Mwaruma.

The Senators had put the Governor on the spot over the Sh 4 billion pending bills some going back as far as 2018 with the Governor defending himself that the reason they were skyrocketing is because his administration was not able to meet its revenue targets.

“Governor Lenku you are serving the last year of your second term in office, how do you expect your successor to know that the county owes employees their dues among the other pending bills that need to be cleared, something needs to be done about this,” said Kajwang.

The Homa Bay Senator wondered why the county had not set aside a budget to clear some pending bills some as old as eight years saying that was being unfair to those who had offered various services to the county and remain unpaid all these years.

Kajwang said that most Counties in Kenya are lazy since they know that funds will be allocated to them from the exchequer and they did not put measures in place to ensure they increase their own source revenue by sealing all loopholes through which it is lost.

He said that most Counties are assured of Parliament allocating them funds annually without having to work hard to collect own source revenue which is narrative that they should change since they have a potential of collecting revenue to cater for some of their needs.

Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna said that the biggest threat to devolution was the National Government which was frustrating them through withholding some of the funds that are required to carry out some of the functions that are devolved.

"My position remains that the biggest threat to devolution is the Presidency which is out to frustrate it, that is why some of us are going for that position to ensure that counties are protected by ensuring that devolution succeeds as it was intended," said Sifuna.

The Governor was taken task by Senators over the non-completion of the County Headquarters which was to cost Sh 492 million which had stalled with concerns raised over the delayed works and the need for the revision of the work plan to ensure it does not become a white elephant.

Lenku told Senators said that the delays of the county headquarters construction were due to some challenges faced by contractor who refused to resume service leading to his administration terminating the contract and that they were looking for ways of having it done.

Kajwang said that the county should look for a better way of ensuring that the county headquarters was completed so as to ensure that the project does not turn into a white elephant having consumed some Sh90 million so far.