Kakamega County Senator Boni Khalwale has called for the immediate arrest or dismissal of Energy and Petroleum Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi following a widening scandal over the alleged diversion of substandard fuel into the Kenyan market.
In a strongly worded statement issued via his official X account on Saturday, April 4, 2026, the Kakamega senator accused the Energy Cabinet Secretary of failing in his core mandate, arguing that he should be held accountable over the reported circulation of condemned fuel valued at Ksh4 billion.
Khalwale said Wandayi, as the head of the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum, bears ultimate responsibility for policy implementation and oversight.
“CS Opiyo Wandayi’s core responsibility is to develop, implement, review and enforce policies in the Ministry of Energy & Petroleum. He is the leader, reporting directly to the President. He knew or aught to have known the diversion of condemned fuel worth Sh 4billion, by those 3 thieves, into the Kenyan market,” Khalwale stated.
He added that if the CS had prior knowledge of the alleged scheme, he should be arrested for criminal culpability. If not, Khalwale argued, Wandayi should take political responsibility and resign or be sacked for what he termed “gross incompetence”.
The senator further warned that failure by the executive to act should trigger parliamentary intervention.
“If he knew he must be arrested immediately for criminal culpability. If he didn’t know he must immediately take political responsibility and resign or be sacked for cross incompetence. If the President fails to sack him because of shenanigans of broad-based government, the National Assembly must then exercise its constitutional mandate and impeach him,” he said.
Khalwale’s remarks come in the wake of the arrest of four senior government officials linked to the alleged procurement and distribution of substandard fuel.
Among those arrested are Petroleum Principal Secretary Mohamed Liban, Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) Director General Daniel Kiptoo, and Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) Managing Director Joe Sang.
The officials were apprehended on Thursday evening by detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) as part of ongoing investigations into the alleged fuel scandal.
Following his arrest, Liban was taken to the DCI headquarters along Kiambu Road in Nairobi for questioning before reportedly being rushed to hospital. The other suspects spent the night in police custody at Gigiri Police Station.
The unfolding scandal has raised fresh concerns about fuel quality in the country, with fears that contaminated or substandard petroleum products may have already made their way into the supply chain.
Khalwale’s demands add to growing political pressure on the Energy Ministry, as lawmakers and the public call for accountability and transparency in the management of the country’s fuel supply.
The controversy also places the spotlight on regulatory agencies tasked with ensuring quality control in the petroleum sector.
