The stage is being set for Nairobi county speaker Benson Mutura to take over the reins once embattled governor Mike Sonko is impeached. Uhuru Kenyatta to win back the fading Kikuyu support wants a person from the community to replace Sonko and then use the scenario to reclaim his support.
Sonko was deputy president William Ruto project in Nairobi politics while the president wanted a Kikuyu 2017. Mutura will on becoming governor, step down after nominating Peter Kenneth to be deputy governor who will eventually land the city top post. Currently, the county does not have a deputy governor. However, other sources say there is a plot to have former Dagoretti South MP Denis Waweru at the helm of the county once Sonko is impeached. Voters in the county will not necessarily go for elections but loopholes in the constitution will allow the acting governor to name a deputy after Sonko is impeached. And in the event of an election, ODM will back a Jubilee candidate thanks to the handshake between Uhuru and Raila Odinga.
Mike Sonko
Waweru is the Building Bridges Initiative national coordinator with Raila’s key ally Mohammed Junet. Those for Kenneth say, after losing in the 2017 presidential race, he has enough clout and will use the position to succeed Uhuru as Mount Kenya political kingpin. Another name being mentioned is that of president Kenya Chamber of Commerce and Industry Richard Ngatia. Of late, Sonko has declared war on Ngatia on learning he is likely to succeed him after being impeached. Ngatia has a network within the county by virtue of his position. Sonko’s removal became apparent last week after MCAs tabled an impeachment motion, accusing him of corruption and ineptitude.
Minority leader Michael Ogada while tabling the motion said 86 out of 122 members had appended signatures in support of the process. If Sonko is impeached, Mutura will take over since Sonko has failed to appoint a deputy ever since Polycarp Igathe resigned three years ago. According to the constitution, if both the governor’s and the deputy’s offices are vacant, the speaker acts as governor and in such circumstances, an election to fill the slot is held within 60 days. The speaker holds the office until the newly elected governor assumes office. But the Nairobi county case is unique in that Sonko, through the controversial transfer of a deed, transferred key dockets to the government. In the transfer deed, the government took over the health, transport, public works, utilities and ancillary services and planning and development dockets.
Dennis Waweru
Uhuru later appointed Major General Mohammed Badi to head the Nairobi Metropolitan Services. Badi was later incorporated in the cabinet and now attends all cabinet meetings after he took an oath of secrecy, a requirement of all persons who attend such meetings or participate in the conduct of cabinet business. Mutura, a former Makadara MP, took over from Beatrice Elachi who resigned amidst a chaotic leadership tussle between her, Sonko and Badi. He was elected speaker with 99 votes, beating contestants who included Abdi Ali, Ken Ng’ondi, Washington Makodingo, Allan Mang’era and Mike Guoro. His candidature was backed by both the Jubilee and ODM in a deal where the orange party was to get the deputy speaker’s slot.
Junet Mohammed
Days later, former Nairobi mayor and Baba Dogo MCA Geoffrey Majiwa was picked as the deputy speaker. Majiwa was the only candidate who presented his papers on time. Initially, Ngei MCA Redson Otieno had shown interest in the post but failed to submit his papers. The position had been left vacant following the resignation of former deputy speaker John Kamangu of Jubilee. In the impeachment motion, the MCAs accuse the governor of gross violation of the constitution, graft and abuse of office. They argue that the governor has been in and out of courtrooms on various cases and is therefore unfit to hold public office. They have also taken issue with his conduct on social media including publishing “abusive and unbecoming words” in his numerous rants that do not befit the high office he holds.
But MCAs allied to the governor claimed he was being targeted over his refusal to assent the bill on Sh37.5 billion 2020-21 budget. Led by Roysambu MCA Peter Warutere, they claimed that an ouster plot was the top agenda of two meetings involving the leadership of the county assembly held at Raila’s Capitol Hill offices. Sonko sent the finance bill back to the assembly saying illegal amendments had been made to the budget. This is the second attempt to impeach the besieged county boss. Early this year, Sonko survived an impeachment plot after Uhuru intervened but he irked the powers that be by denying NMS money to run county affairs. In the budget that Sonko rejected, NMS had been allocated Sh27.1 billion while his administration had been allocated Sh6.4 billion to cater for the remaining functions.
Polycarp Igathe
The county assembly was to receive Sh2 billion. Sonko has been claiming that NMS is an illegal and amorphous outfit that does not exist in the constitution. He claims he signed the deal after State House officials spiked his drink, hence, he was not in the right state of mind. The governor has claimed he has been the subject of impeachment threats and even jail from State House operatives whenever he differs with “orders from above” by refusing to release the controversial payments. “They can jail me but there is life in prison. They can impeach me but there is a life after politics. They can even kill me but there is life after death. My father is resting in peace and even the founding father Mzee Jomo Kenyatta is also resting,” Sonko was quoted by a local daily recently. After the impeachment motion was tabled, Sonko true to Kamba ngya ng’endu (maskini jeuri) or unapologetic pauper mentality said he is ready to go home adding “my father was not a politician” this in an apparent reference to Uhuru and Raila whose fathers were politicians.
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