Inside Sakaja's controversial tenure at City Hall

Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja at Parliament Buildings, Nairobi. [Elvis Ogina, Standard]

Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja swears by the mantra of restoring order to Kenya’s capital, lavishing slogans like ‘Let’s make Nairobi Work’ and ‘Lazima Iwork’, which he has plastered on county government establishments.

His tenure, barely two-and-a-half years old, has contradicted everything he claimed to stand for. It has been underlined by pettiness, which has sparked constant fights.

This was on display last Tuesday, when goons were unleashed on the streets of Nairobi to counter peaceful protests, staged following the brutal killing of Albert Ojwang’, a 31-year-old teacher.

The knife-wielding thugs, who also bore sticks, would mug Kenyans, looting businesses as law enforcement agents watched. When they were done visiting terror on Kenyans, they would march to Sakaja’s office at City Hall to pay homage and assure the governor they had succeeded in the job laid out to them.

“Sakaja tumelinda jiji. Hatuwaogopi. Wakuje sasa (Sakaja, we have protected the city. We are not afraid of them. Let them come now),” one of the goons is audible in a video clip that has circulated widely on social media. He was marching alongside others who bore crude weapons like him.

Later, the governor denied  hiring the goons to clash with protesters, saying he “strongly condemned the destruction of public and private property… perpetrated by hired goons brought in from outside Nairobi.”

“We categorically dissociate ourselves from any gangs, militias, or politically sponsored groups that exploit demonstrations to engage in criminal activity,” Sakaja said in a statement.

How did he find himself issuing such a statement? Last weekend, the governor threatened to crack down on protesters who had announced their plans to stage demonstrations on Tuesday. He spoke the same language as the gangs he denied sending to the streets: that of “protecting” the city.

“Last week, they caught me unawares. Let them come back. Let them try again. We will protect the capital city,” Sakaja threatened in Turbo, Uasin Gishu. “Haven’t they announced the day they will be coming (protesting)? Let them try to touch anyone’s business or property.”

Sakaja doubled down on Sunday, asserting that protesters would “find me in Nairobi.” He was nowhere to be seen when the protests started. Goons were driving many into the conclusion that they were under the governor’s instructions.

“Sakaja has to explain himself,” said Philip Kisia, a governance consultant who served as the town clerk in the defunct Nairobi City Council, who termed Sakaja’s remarks as “most unfortunate.”

“We can’t confirm with certainty who was involved, but the perception out there is that Sakaja was involved. He should have said security agencies would be there to prevent the destruction of property, not himself.”

He added that the tactic was deployed by “governments which lacked legitimacy, and think they have to use militias to instill fear in Kenyans.”

“It is a dangerous approach that will see the government eventually lose control of the militia. Everyone must work within the Constitution even when you think it offends you,” said Kisia.

State sponsored goons along Koinange street during Justice For Albert Ojwang Protests on June 17, 2025. [Kanyiri Wahito, Standard]

Embakasi East MP Babu Owino was certain that the governor had hired the thugs, calling him out on social media.

“Johnson Sakaja, your actions today do not make you strong. Hurting others does not give you power. It reveals your weakness, it reveals your fear, it reveals your utter lack of respect for the rule of law, and we will not allow fear to win. I want to tell you clearly that you've hurt so many people with the goons that you've hired today at the CBD to hurt people during demonstrations, and we will not take it lightly,” said Owino.

Sakaja has been trending on social media, with netizens asserting that he was responsible for hiring the goons, who some refer to as “goons wa Sakaja.”

“Hao goons wa Sakaja na polisi wakitaka kuja wakuje tu, but… on Wednesday it is a peaceful march,” rights activist Boniface Mwangi said on Friday at the Milimani Law Courts about the protests planned for next Wednesday, to mark the first anniversary of the June 25, 2024 demonstration, which saw Parliament breached.

Sakaja is not new to this game of denial. In February, amid a tiff between Nairobi County and the Kenya Power and Lighting Company over debts owed to each other, City Hall dumped garbage at Stima Plaza. While he denied instructing orderlies to dump the garbage, he admitted to having deployed the garbage trucks to block access to the Stima Plaza building.

 “I reprimanded the county staff for dumping garbage at Stima Plaza entrance as they were strictly instructed to block it, not dumping,” he stated, an admission that put into question his leadership.

As many pointed out, deploying garbage trucks to Stima Plaza would affect other premises, which include restaurants, not involved in their wars. Several restaurant owners lamented that business was low for them owing to the garbage trucks.

“There were better ways of handling the situation, and Sakaja failed to provide leadership. Both sides, even Kenya Power, failed to provide leadership,” said Kisia.

The governor’s controversies extend to his relationship with members of the Nairobi County Assembly, who have repeatedly threatened to impeach him, threats he has successfully muted since President William Ruto partnered with former Prime Minister Raila Odinga under their ‘broad-based’ arrangement.

That has largely cemented his coalition with MCAs from Raila’s Orange Democratic Movement, whom he reached out to as soon as he was elected, ostensibly to insulate himself from possible impeachment. However, that has not kept the county lawmakers quiet.

The main entrance of Stima Plaza,on 24th February 2025 at Stima Plaza in Nairobi after Nairobi county government blocked Kenya power headquarters entrance with garbage over wrangles of unpaid bill. [Edward Kiplimo,Standard]

In January, a section of MCAs warned that the management of the county was “degenerating further”, accusing the governor, without evidence, of unleashing goons on county lawmakers.

“The governor seems to have pocketed the leadership of this assembly. What we are witnessing right now is the governor targeting MCAs individually to ensure that they are assaulted,” Kileleshwa MCA Robert Alai claimed then, highlighting a previous incident involving the two city MCAs.

“If the governor thinks the hiring of goons is going to change the course of his performance, I think he is deluded… what we are witnessing in Nairobi today is a result of the governor feeling that he is above the law.”

The Sunday Standard could not independently verify the stated allegations.

Sakaja has also fought hawkers, with his officers occasionally clashing with them violently. In October 2023, Sakaja was forced to apologise for the violent harassment of street vendors. This harassment has not stopped, with the nation shocked by sustained crackdowns.

Courtesy of his conflict with traders, Sakaja earned an enemy in former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua. Their tiff last year was sparked by a plan to relocate traders of the Marikiti market to the Kangundo Road Market.

Right from the start, it was clear his tenure would be laden with controversy. Sakaja’s candidacy was in question courtesy of a university degree he said to have earned virtually at a Ugandan institution, Teams University, whose credibility many doubt.

Kisia, who previously managed Kenya’s capital, said Sakaja’s performance had been “average”.

“We can understand the challenges because he is working with a regime that does not believe in order,” he said.