Babu Owino pledges good service if elected Nairobi Governor

Embakasi East MP Babu Owino acknowledges greetings from supporters of Linda Mwananchi along Jogoo Road, on September 13, 2026. [Wanyiri Kahito, Standard]

Embakasi East MP Babu Owino has pledged to overhaul garbage collection, improve drainage and strengthen the school feeding programme if elected governor of Nairobi, while accusing the current county administration  of failing to adequately prepare for anticipated El Niño rains.

Speaking at Jacaranda Ground, Nairobi, Owino said residents had endured years of suffering caused by flooding, poor drainage and uncollected garbage, warning that the situation could worsen if heavy rains hit the capital.

He criticised the county government for what he described as inadequate preparations, saying the city’s drainage system remained incapable of handling heavy rainfall.

“The city has a challenge with drainage, with the El Nino coming, you will see many people carried by floods,” Owino said.

He questioned the administration’s continued explanation that it inherited a dysfunctional system, arguing that leaders who accepted office should have been prepared to address existing challenges.

“I want you people to assist me we construct good roads and drainage system in our city,” he said.

Owino also placed garbage collection among his key priorities, saying Nairobi residents were forced to wake up to piles of waste in their neighbourhoods.

“When Nairobians wake up in the morning they are faced with heap of garbage. If elected I will deal with the menace in the city,” he said.

He proposed involving young people, women and men in garbage collection by encouraging them to register companies that could secure county tenders.

“Let’s not be cheated that collection of garbage is a unique problem,” he said, arguing that the county could create employment while keeping the city clean.

On education, Owino promised to make school fees support a priority, particularly for children from vulnerable and low-income families. He said bursaries would help ease the financial burden on parents whom he described as hustlers.

“Most of our parents are hustlers, but school fees problem will be solved through bursary,” he said.

Owino also promised to expand Nairobi’s school feeding programme rather than abolish it. He criticised the requirement for parents to contribute Sh5 per day and said that, under his administration, school-going children would receive meals for free.

“I cannot abolish the current feeding programme. The challenge with the current programme is that parents are called upon to pay Sh5 per day, but if elected, no parent will be charged and I will feed school-going children for free, with their parents supplying food stuff,” he said.

The MP further criticised the state of public healthcare, describing some Nairobi hospitals as “death traps” and blaming poor systems for inadequate services and deaths in public facilities.

On national politics, Owino reaffirmed his support for Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna’s presidential ambitions while defending Siaya governor James Orengo’s right to contest. He called for unity within the Linda Mwananchi movement and said opposition leaders should eventually negotiate to field one candidate against President William Ruto in 2027.

“We will produce Sifuna who will sit on the table with Orengo, Gachagua, Kalonzo and other candidates who will then engage and produce a single presidential candidate who will face President Ruto,” he said.