•Sakaja had promised to design garbage collection plan for the 17 subcounties to ensure the mounting filth is cleared.
• Youths would form garbage collection groups in wards and make money.
Image: WILFRED NYANGARESI
The Nairobi assembly has criticised Governor Johnson Sakaja for failing to implement a solid waste law authorising youth to form ward garbage collection groups to generate income.
Through a motion by Roysambu MCA Sospeter Mumbi, the assembly complained the Nairobi City County Solid Waste Management Act, 2015 is stalled as regulations have not been passed.
The motion seeks to compel the Sakaja administration to develop regulations to enable sections of the law to take effect.
Mumbi's focus is Section 38 allowing youths at the ward level to form garbage collection Saccos that clean up litter in an organised manner.
The groups can monetise the garbage collection as they can be subcontracted by businesses that have won tenders for the tasks. The Act would enable garbage pick up, job creation and income generation.
"This assembly urges the county Executive to urgently develop regulations to implement Section 38 of the Solid Waste Management Act, 2015. It provides Waste Collection and Management Saccos in every ward to be registered and authorised to collect garbage in an organised manner across the city," the motion reads.
Garbage collection is a big business ridden with deep political interests and cartels.
In fact, it was the intrigues of garbage sector tendering in Nairobi that was part of the problems that caused former Governor Mike Sonko to be removed from office.
He was accused of getting entangled in the tendering with money trails allegedly traced to him. The case is in the anti-corruption court.
The lawmakers said enacting regulations and forming small local outfits will enable Nairobians to enjoy a clean environment which is cited in the Constitution.
The move will also sort the challenges of capacity and manpower that have dogged solid waste management.
Implementation of waste management faces numerous challenges including inadequate capacity, corruption within and beyond the county government, cartels, the lethargic nature of county staff and citizenry faced with apathy and collective irresponsibility for waste management, the resolution said.
Mismanagement of solid waste is an emerging health threat to both levels of government, affecting residents' lives, the environment and well-being of the city.
Last October, Governor Sakaja had announced his administration would designate new garbage collection points in the subcounties to curb illegal dumping.
He said the previous administration had failed to pay contractors who downed their tools months before the August polls.
It is not clear what has become of this proposal.
“I already met subcounty administrators and officials from the environment department," Sakaja said at the time.
"We are going to publish designated collection points for the public to know where they will be dumping."