Governor Mike Sonko has dismissed a proposal to dissolve the county and revert its management to the national government.
The proposal was reignited by Kericho senator Aaron Cheruiyot.
On Thursday Sonko said the senator was disregarding the Constitution. “Senators are supposed to protect the interests of devolution and all counties,” Sonko said.
He was speaking at Maji House after receiving two sewer flushing units donated by the Athi Water Services Board under the Nairobi Regeneration Programme. Water CS Simon Chelugui was present.
Sonko said Cheruiyot has the right to comment about devolution but he accused the senator of having ulterior motives.
“Dissolving Nairobi County would require a referendum. The county has more than six million residents who should have the final say on whether it is dissolved or not,” he said.
A similar proposal had been made by former Murang’a senator Kembi Gitura in 2015. Cheruiyot’s bill seeks to have the county renamed the National Capital City. The bill is yet to be published.
Last month, a resident petitioned President Uhuru Kenyatta and the Senate to suspend Sonko’s administration for failing to deliver services.
Muthurwa Residents Association chairman Patrick Githinji said the suspension would stop loss of funds through “ghost projects”. He said internal conflicts had derailed development.
Sonko asked leaders to stop playing politics with devolution.
“Let the Kericho senator stop abusing his powers. He cannot decide the fate of all Nairobi residents. Let him do his oversight role as I did when I was also a senator,” Sonko said. He reiterated his warning to Murang’a governor Mwangi wa Iria to stop politicising water and demanding payment for water from Ndakaini Dam.
Wa Iria and other Murang’a leaders want Nairobi to pay 25 per cent tax for water from Ndakaini Dam.
STATE RESOURCE
The reservoir supplies 84 per cent of the capital’s water.
“Water is our oil. Residents in Turkana demand their fair share through demonstrations and picketing until the government listened to them. We are not an exception, we can’t be giving water to other counties for free when they sell the same commodity to residents,” Wa Iria said last month.
Sonko has since dared Wa Iria to make good his threat to stop the supply.
The Nairobi governor said he would retaliate by demolishing Wa Iria’s investments in buildings on road reserves in the city. The national government has stepped in to end the impasse. Chelugui said water was a resource controlled by the national government.
Yesterday, Sonko urged his colleagues to support the ministry to expand access to clean water. He said the two new flushing units will
unclog sewer lines and drains, thus helping to prevent flooding.
The equipment was immediately taken to Gikomba Market to unclog sewer lines. Sonko’s said the Sh54 million trucks will mostly be used to clear sewer lines and manholes that often discharge sewage.
The units will be managed and maintained by the Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company, Chelugui said.
The CS said the units will improve hygiene and health by eliminating waterborne diseases.
“We are at an advanced stage in negotiating a funding agreement with Africa Development Bank for a Sh7.3 billion facility under Nairobi rivers restoration project phase II,” Chelugui said.
He said the project will improve sewerage coverage in Nairobi from the current 48 per cent to 60 per cent.
He said the ministry was ready to partner with City Hall to clean rivers and improve water access.
“We need to work as a team. But we should also stop polluting our rivers in order to keep the environment safe,” Chelugui said.