Sakaja Alleges State House Plot to Seize City Hall as Service Failures Mount

Sakaja Blames Powerful Individuals in State House For Scheming To Take Over City Hall Roles Even As His Leadership Comes Under Scrutiny Over Underperformance

Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja has sensationally claimed that powerful individuals within the national government are scheming to wrest control of key City Hall functions, even as his administration faces mounting criticism over poor service delivery and financial mismanagement.

Speaking in a wide-ranging interview over the weekend, the embattled governor said unnamed officials eyeing the lucrative Nairobi governorship in 2027 are pushing a sinister agenda to take over county functions through the backdoor, despite his categorical refusal to cede any responsibilities to the national government.

“There are speculations, and some people are pushing that agenda. Think about the political stakes in Nairobi after the Presidency; there is no bigger position to contest than the governorship of Nairobi,” Sakaja said, his voice thick with frustration.

The governor insisted that unlike the defunct Nairobi Metropolitan Services arrangement that left City Hall with a crippling Sh16 billion debt, the current framework with President William Ruto’s administration is merely a support mechanism and not a transfer of functions.

“We have not ceded any functions. A transfer of functions is not what we are discussing and it is not something we will do. If there were a transfer of functions, there would be a formal document as provided for in Article 187 of the Constitution. Have you seen any such document? There is none,” Sakaja declared defiantly.

But even as the governor attempts to fend off what he terms as a hostile takeover, his administration is drowning in a sea of failures that have left Nairobians questioning his competence and mandate to lead the capital city.

City Hall is bleeding money like a wounded animal. Official records show that unpaid revenues ballooned by a staggering Sh2 billion between July and September last year, with land rates defaulters alone accounting for Sh1.29 billion of the unpaid dues. Only 50,000 out of 250,000 registered land parcels currently pay rates, exposing a catastrophic failure in revenue collection.

The garbage crisis continues to choke the city, with mountains of refuse piling up in estates and the Central Business District despite Sakaja’s repeated promises to clean up Nairobi. Residents have watched helplessly as their once-beautiful city degenerates into a filthy mess, with the governor blaming everyone from the defunct NMS to rogue garbage collectors for the mess.

Roads across the capital remain in shambles, pockmarked with potholes that swallow vehicles whole during the rainy season. Water scarcity has become the norm rather than the exception, with many estates going for days without supply. Street lighting is virtually non-existent in vast swathes of the city, turning them into crime hotspots where muggers and thugs reign supreme.

The situation has become so dire that even members of the County Assembly, supposedly Sakaja’s allies, have turned against him with brutal honesty. Baba Dogo MCA Geoffrey Majiwa did not mince his words when he declared that the governor has failed residents for the past three years.

“It is true that the governor has failed the residents for the past three years. He has done nothing. He talks about collaboration, but what is the nature of this collaboration? There must be papers showing a transfer of functions, yet we are seeing none. It is a sad tragedy for Nairobi,” Majiwa said, calling for Sakaja’s resignation or impeachment.

Deputy Majority Whip Waithera Chege was equally scathing, openly welcoming greater national government involvement and faulting Sakaja for his spectacular failures.

“For a long time, we have been crying to the President about the governor’s performance. We support this fully. It is clear that the governor has failed in delivering his mandate. What we want now is the implementation of all the projects through the national government. Residents want better services, nothing else,” Chege said without holding back.

The political intrigue intensified after it emerged that Sakaja, accompanied by his entire cabinet, held a secret meeting with President Ruto at State House last week. No official communique was issued after the marathon session, fueling speculation that a deal to hand over key functions was sealed behind closed doors.

Reports indicate that the arrangement covers garbage collection and disposal, public works including road construction and maintenance, water supply and affordable housing, with the national government committing an estimated Sh2.1 billion to accelerate service delivery through agencies like the Kenya Urban Roads Authority and Athi Water Works Development Agency.

President Ruto himself has made several public pronouncements about taking charge of Nairobi’s transformation. In a church service at AIC Pipeline, he declared that his administration would handle waste management, roads and street lighting, signaling an increasingly central role for the national government in running the capital.

“We must make Nairobi more accessible, and we have agreed with the governor on how we are going to do it. On water, we have completed the Northern Collector Tunnel and we now have an extra 140 million litres. We will deal with the garbage menace,” Ruto announced, leaving little doubt about the shift in power dynamics.

Sakaja’s predicament mirrors that of his predecessor Mike Sonko, who was similarly pressured by President Uhuru Kenyatta into signing off key responsibilities to the NMS in 2020 after City Hall descended into chaos marked by leadership wrangles, corruption allegations and deteriorating service delivery.

The governor has tried to defend his position by arguing that Nairobi’s unique status as the capital demands special financing and collaboration with the national government, citing examples of Paris and New York which receive substantial national support.

“Paris, with a population of 2 million, has a budget of Sh13 trillion yet Nairobi, with over 6 million people, has a budget of about Sh38 billion. If we want to compete with international cities, we must embrace special financing and strategic partnerships,” Sakaja said, attempting to justify the controversial arrangement.

He pointed to Section 6 of the Urban Areas and Cities Act, 2019, which recognises Nairobi as Kenya’s capital and calls for formal cooperation between county and national governments on funding and service delivery.

However, constitutional lawyers and opposition politicians have raised serious questions about the legality of the arrangement. Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna has been particularly vocal, pointing out that no formal deed of transfer has been tabled before the County Assembly as required by Article 187 of the Constitution.

“Constitutionally there has to be a deed of transfer of functions. It has to be approved by the county assembly. I have seen neither,” Sifuna posted on social media, throwing cold water on Sakaja’s claims that no transfer has occurred.

The drama has exposed the precarious position that Nairobi governors find themselves in, caught between the demands of running a complex metropolis and the political machinations of powerful interests at the national level who see control of the capital as a stepping stone to higher office.

With AFCON 2027 on the horizon and mounting pressure to transform Nairobi into a world-class city, the stakes have never been higher. But as garbage piles up, roads crumble and residents suffer, the question on everyone’s lips is whether Sakaja has what it takes to turn things around, or whether the vultures circling State House will eventually swoop in to pick at the carcass of his failed administration.

For now, the governor remains defiant, insisting that he will protect devolution and resist any attempts to undermine the county government. But with his performance record speaking louder than his words, time may be running out for Johnson Sakaja’s City Hall dream.