• He argues governor has no clue about what is happening in the city
• Sonko should not break the law, confess it, chest thump about his legal actions
Image: FILE
A lawyer who wanted Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko out of office will pay Sh5,000 for delaying the case.
Boniface Nyamu filed a petition seeking to remove Sonko from office in December last year but kept adjourning the case.
The case failed to take off on Wednesday, again, after Nyamu sought an adjournment on grounds that the lawyer representing him is unwell.
High Court judge James Makau, while stressing how serious the matter was, said the application for adjournment was unjustifiable but agreed to push the case to August.
In the petition, Nyamu, an advocate of the High Court, cited several grounds for Sonko’s removal, among them "treating Nairobians and Kenyans at large to drama by posting private insulting conversations on his social media account", ban on matatus from the Central Business District and refusing to nominate a deputy governor.
He singles out the governor for verbally assaulting Environment CS Keriako Tobiko, Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu and members of the county assembly
“When we were electing the governor, we elected him alongside his deputy governor in consideration that they would complement each other in terms of politics and development but immediately the respondent was sworn in, he started frustrating his deputy until he resigned,” the lawyer argues.
He wants the court to bar the governor from transacting any county business until the case is heard and determined.
Nyamu argues that ever since Sonko was elected, he has "reneged on all his promises and is totally clueless about what is happening in the city."
He says Sonko is unfit to hold a public office following a confession made live on television where the governor admitted to have smoked bhang within the precincts of the National Assembly with Waititu.
Nyamu contends that Sonko has broken the law and publicly admitted to it when he posted a phone recording between him and Waititu, promising to break the law in Waititu’s favour for the reason that they are colleagues.
“This is a gross violation of the Constitution, since as a public officer responsible for the capital city of the country, Sonko is under a duty not only to respect and protect the Constitution but to base all his decisions and actions on law and not special subjective considerations as he outlined in that particular audio,” he argues.
“The respondent should not break the law, confess about it, chest thump of his legal actions and still expect to rule millions of law-abiding citizens of the city.”
Sonko has also been alleged to be negligent since more than one and a half years after the resignation of Polycarp Igathe, he has failed to appoint a deputy governor despite the Supreme Court having issued an advisory opinion with a timeline.
The governor has, however, denied allegations the county government has degenerated in its stature and has not provided any statistical bases, benchmarks or any finding of expertise upon which his allegations can be based as conducive.
Sonko said he has worked closely with all the MCAs to ensure all roads and even grabbed roads are opened up, tarmacked and maintained in a reasonable standard subject to the availability of funds.
Edited by R.Wamochie