Civil society seeks to dissolve Nairobi County over graft, poor services
Kenya Bora Tuitakayo said since September 2022, when Sakaja’s administration took over, Nairobi has been subjected to corruption, poor services, and financial mismanagement.
A civil society lobby has accused President William Ruto and ODM leader Raila Odinga of betraying Nairobi residents by shielding Governor Johnson Sakaja from impeachment, and is now pushing for the dissolution of the county government.
Kenya Bora Tuitakayo said since September 2022, when Sakaja’s administration took over, Nairobi has been subjected to corruption, poor services, and financial mismanagement.
The group announced it would mobilise city residents to collect signatures to demand a complete dissolution of the county government.
“We shall immediately consult Nairobians in all the 17 constituencies and 85 wards on the need to collect signatures to dissolve the county government in toto. It is time to send the Governor, his deputy, and all the MCAs home,” said spokesperson Cyprian Nyamwamu.
The lobby accused both UDA and ODM leaders of conspiring to protect Sakaja’s administration at the expense of residents. “We particularly call upon Senator (Edwin) Sifuna to support this initiative of rescuing Nairobi from the cruel and corrupt Sakaja regime,” Nyamwamu said.
According to the group, the decision by Ruto and Raila to stop the impeachment motion was motivated by their own political interests and not the welfare of Nairobians.
The lobby, whose leadership also includes lawyer Harun Ndubi, said it had commissioned an audit of the county’s financial books. It claimed Nairobi City County Government was technically insolvent due to ballooning debts.
They pointed out that while the county’s 2023/2024 budget was Sh42.2 billion, pending bills had risen to Sh118 billion. “To settle this debt, NCCG has to shut down for three financial years, collecting taxes from Kenyans without service delivery. In simple terms, NCCG is insolvent,” they stated.
The group further claimed that if the county government and MCAs had prudently spent the Sh160.6 billion allocated in the past years, Nairobi would have modern and well-equipped facilities.
Instead, they argued, more than three-quarters of the money, estimated at Sh120 billion, had been lost through fraud. “Based on these brief findings, we conclude that more than three-quarters (Sh120 billion) have been defrauded, and hence the need for a fraud Audit,” they said.
They also accused ODM and UDA leadership of being part of the scheme to defraud Nairobi residents, warning that impeachment was no longer a viable option because money had already compromised the process.
The lobby pledged to work with the Office of the Auditor General to carry out a detailed audit, while calling on residents to take part in the planned signature drive.
“We call upon Nairobians in all the 85 wards to take their Nairobi back from the regime by supporting dissolution. Dissolution is the only way because we have seen how money has made impeachment impossible,” they stated.
