I was not surprised by the way Governor Mike Sonko behaved when the anchor fired the first question on his interview on Citizen TV’s JKL live.
JK first aired the video clip of the comments Sonko made against Nairobi Woman Representative Esther Passaris and then asked him to respond. Apparently, it seemed Sonko knew this question would come up and so he was prepared to defend himself.
As he has done before, he immediately reached out to his mobile phone and started scrolling it. He would draw the attention of the anchor to SMSs, images and posts on WhatsApp conversations with Passaris. “If I hated her, I would not have approved money to buy air tickets for her overseas trips. Parliament would pay her per diems and she would insist to be paid the same allowances by my government,” he says.
Why would he pay her if he knew she was not entitled? Doesn’t this amount to stealing from public coffers? He was also quick to add that President Uhuru Kenyatta “is not involved in this game”. The interview ended prematurely after Sonko threatened to spill more beans on his “private conversations” with Passaris.
Why would the governor take images or record these conversations? It is because he knew this is a strong weapon of blackmailing and intimidating those he has fallen out with. Many believe the aim is to disarm those he may have cut questionable deals with him. He knows many of these leaders cannot match him when it comes to playing dirty politics. By now, one would have expected those engaging with Sonko to have learnt a lesson. But it seems they have not. To be on the safe side, maybe don’t call him; instead, book an appointment so you can have a conversation in an open field.
Political analyst and blogger
