Sonko should stop the show and deliver for Nairobians

Dandora dumpsite in Nairobi. [WILLIS AWANDU, STANDARD]

Like a spoilt child, Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko is sulking because his security detail has been reduced to four. To express his anger and apparent frustration at the withdrawal of this privilege, Mr Sonko has now moved his office to his obtrusive mansion in Machakos County.

Ever since he was elected governor of East Africa’s biggest metropolis, Mr Sonko has featured in news; not for transforming what was once described as the city in the sun, but for his sense of showmanship.

Sonko should stop the drama and deliver for Nairobians; those who saw in him a better option than the much decorated boardroom titan Evans Kidero who proved woefully incapable of fixing Nairobi’s seemingly intractable problems; insecurity, joblessness, housing, sewage and collapsing infrastructure.

It was assumed that as an outsider (his candidature was unconventional in many ways), Sonko would seek to prove to those who voted for him that their decision was not in vain.

Alas, how they wrong they were.

Sonko’s antiques are as numerous as they are embarrassing. From needless social media bouts of fights with concerned city residents; to blaming cartels for his poor performance; to the recent breach of protocol where, uninvited, Sonko stood and addressed a presidential function. President Uhuru Kenyatta and other dignitaries could only watch, stupefied.

Surely, Nairobi’s 6 million souls deserve better than the drama of this attention-grabbing politician.

Nearly one year after elections that got him into office, so little has changed and Nairobians are justified to ask questions. That the National Government has had to step in several times “to rescue” Sonko with such initiatives like the Nairobi Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (NAMATA) speaks alot about a governor seemingly out of depth.

Indeed, it would be unfair to adjudge Sonko a non-performer because he faced an arduous task of  regenerating a city that had gone to the dogs.

Short of a miracle, cleaning up decades’ old of rot needed time and funds. His grave mistake was to imagine that flamboyance and dash of show mania would work.

Yet Sonko still has some time to right his wrongs. Barring natural causes and an impeachment motion (with its twists and turns), Sonko will be here for the long haul. He needs to stop the show and work for Nairobians.