Mosiria sacked as City Hall power struggle intensifies

The sacking of Nairobi Chief Officer for Public Engagement Geoffrey Mosiria was not a matter of if, but when. It came yesterday afternoon, hours after he declared that he would not resign.

Mosiria is now jobless following the latest changes announced by Governor Johnson Sakaja at City Hall yesterday, which left him without a portfolio.

The changes came barely a fortnight after Mosiria declared his bid for the Nairobi governor’s seat, followed by a series of revelations about alleged failures in service delivery under the Sakaja administration.

Under the latest changes, Ziporah Njeri Mwangi will take over the Public Participation, Citizen Engagement and Customer Service docket, which Mosiria held in an acting capacity.

Other changes announced in a memo by County Secretary Michael Waikenda saw Samwel Njogu appointed Chief Officer for Mobility, while Geoffrey Akumali, currently Chief Officer for Housing, was assigned another role and will also serve in an acting capacity in the Lands docket.

Hours before the letter confirming Mosiria’s removal was issued, he had dared the county boss on social media to sack him, saying he was fed up and ready to face him at the ballot.

Yesterday, Mosiria said his sacking was still unofficial because he had not physically seen the letter.

However, the decision appeared to have been finalised after he made allegations  about the Sakaja administration’s failure to deliver for Nairobi residents.

"I only saw the letter on social media, but this did not start today. The problem dates back to 2023. In fact, that was the last time I had a sitting in Nairobi," Mosiria told The Standard.

He added: "Months after being appointed to the Health docket, some people closer to the governor were not happy that I refused to allow them to come up with fake tenders. I was stripped of powers that included being the accounting officer."

While serving in the Health docket, he claimed that his budget was reduced from Sh1.2 billion to Sh100 million as a form of punishment, alleging that the move was linked to claims that he was favouring some people close to the governor’s office.

"I endured frustrations, official WhatsApp group attacks, public attacks, and a court case that nearly saw me jailed for six months over alleged contempt of court, which was well planned to kick me out of office. And when I asked why, what followed was a transfer to customer service," he stated.

He added, "I have endured the pain, learned from the challenges, and I am ready to serve. My desire has never been to fight anyone; it has always been to fix the systems and serve the people of Nairobi."

On October 2, 2026, Mosiria publicly declared his interest in unseating Sakaja, who first appointed him Chief Officer for Health about two years ago.

"Former Governor Mike Sonko has tasked me with organising a meeting with Dr Fred Matiang’i, the Jubilee Party Leader, so that the two leaders can officially give me direction and, if they agree, endorse my candidature for Governor of Nairobi," Mosiria shared on Sunday.

He added in part, "I respect my current boss. But I also cannot ignore the call of the people of Nairobi. My track record speaks for itself. I am not forcing myself on the people; the people are calling, and I believe God is calling me to serve."

From the time he was appointed Chief Officer for Health, Mosiria began showcasing his daily activities, a practice his counterparts rarely followed.

This is said to have ruffled the feathers of some allies close to Sakaja, who accused him of trying to outshine the governor. However, Mosiria continued publicising his work.

Among the changes he oversaw were a facelift at City Mortuary and efforts to streamline activities at public hospitals across the city.

That changed in 2024, when  Mosiria was transferred from the Health docket to Environment in the same capacity, a move that was seen as an attempt to cut him down to size.

In the Environment docket, his activities intensified, and he became a familiar figure in Nairobi estates, responding to residents’ complaints about noisy clubs and churches. With the help of the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), several clubs were shut down, while others were fined for noise pollution.

The Standard has been told that Mosiria fell out with Sakaja about three years ago and, consequently, struggled to settle in the dockets to which he was transferred.

Last year, Mosiria was moved from Environment to Customer Care Services, another decision that was seen as an attempt to place him in a less powerful office.

Sakaja did not respond to our inquiry about whether he was on good terms with Mosiria and why the chief officer had been transferred three times.

"My style of service is responding to the needs of the people, and that is what I do on a daily basis," Mosiria said, adding that powerful forces were calling the shots at City Hall.

"If you want Nairobi to work and this money you send for the collaboration agreement to work, then you have to even bring an NMS or an entity to solve this mess in Nairobi. President Ruto, you need to have officers who are doing this work professionally, but not the county to do it," Mosiria said.

"Whenever you see my boss on the ground, just know that he's not there just to make sure that the work is being done well. He's there to make sure that whatever is being done, because they have an interest, is done in a way that they save money because they are the main contractors on this."

Sources at City Hall described a bitter fallout between the two, with indications that former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko is backing Mosiria in his bid to unseat Sakaja.

"There was a feeling that Mosiria was trying to outshine the boss. That is what brought the friction. His other mistake was organising an end-of-year event for people from the Abagusii community at KICC."

"Sakaja attended the first one but skipped the last two, followed by the moving of the chief officer twice in about one year. There is now a three-year friction between them," the source added.