From Sonko to Badi, Nairobi needs more work and less petty dramas

In a ridiculous twist of events, Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko wants to reverse the recent transfer of four key functions to the national government.

Completely out of the blue in February this year, the Nairobi County government transferred health, transport services, public works, and planning and development functions to the national government following mutual agreement.

In the highly publicised protocol, Sonko was seen signing the deed of transfer on behalf of the county government, while Cabinet Secretary for Devolution Eugene Wamalwa signed on behalf of the national government. President Uhuru Kenyatta was a witness to that ceremony.

Slightly over a month after the transfer, Sonko appears to have changed his mind. However, it is a little too late in the day for him to renege on a deal he willingly signed, for several reasons.

From the outset, there was a general feeling that the transfer had not followed the right procedure. Ideally, it should have accommodated the input of all stakeholders.

First, the transfer was not deliberated upon in the county assembly to give it legitimacy through the endorsement of a majority of MCAs, and second, it was not subjected to public participation. Had that been observed, the excuses Sonko now advances that he did not read the deed of transfer would not have arisen. If anything, the admission that he did not read the deed vindicates those who have held the view that Sonko was not cut out for the job of running a complex metropolis like Nairobi, which also holds the seat of power of the national government.

Since Sonko has hardly demonstrated that he is up to the task, the needs of Nairobians now deserve to be properly seen to by the apolitical Nairobi Metropolitan Services under Maj Gen Mohamed Badi, in accordance with the agreement that the city’s governor signed.

There should be no turning back, and the agreement should be allowed to run its full course as a done deal. Nairobians should not be saddled with litigation that adds no value to their lives.

Yet, to dismiss Sonko’s claim that some people are trying to frustrate him would be injudicious. For instance, the proposal by MPs that the 2020-2021 budget allocation for Nairobi be held in the Consolidated Fund is mischievous. The deed of transfer did not mean Nairobi County should be starved of funds.