The story is told of a man who offered to plant
trees in order to contribute to better rainfall in his community. Some
villagers were happy with his proposal while others did not support him given
his past record of minimal performance in other projects. Those who supported
him gave him the best piece of land in the village. He assured the villagers
that he would produce results but one year later, nothing had come out of the
ground. When put to task, he blamed other people including his ancestors.
That is the story of the Nairobi governor Mike Sonko.
During the campaign period, the governor promised to deliver on key development
projects. To begin with, he wooed city residents with a ten-point manifesto for
the first 100 days in office. Sonko’s plan included promoting access to water,
security, an ease to transport and traffic, garbage collection, health, wealth
creation, empowerment of the women and youth, good housing and settlement and
good governance. All the while, he did not foresee anything that would deter
his performance.
However, since his election as governor, Nairobi
remains in deplorable conditions despite its status as the most prestigious
city in eastern and central Africa. The city is chocking from the effects of
filth and dirt, uncoordinated hawking spaces, traffic congestion and poor
roads, infiltration of street families, blocked sewerage systems among other
dysfunctional services. The ambitious governor’s plan flew away with the
resignation of his deputy few months back. Close to a year later, Sonko has no
road map to improve services or to spruce up the city.
From his past record both in parliament and in the
Senate, the governor engages more in side shows than in performing his
contractual duties. While other governors report to office, he reports to
social media, competing with socialites. Moreover, like the village lad who
blamed others for his lack of skill in planting trees, Sonko has repeatedly
blamed his inability to steer development in Nairobi on his predecessor, Dr.
Evans Kidero. One would ask for example, how does Kidero’s stints at city hall
stop Sonko from refurbishing roads, collecting garbage or unclogging the ever
blocked drainage system? The governor has repeatedly engaged in endless stories
on how he has increased the city’s revenue collection but fails to elaborate on
expenditure. Where is the increased revenue going? Can the governor use the
improved collection to deliver basic services like cleaning the city?
The governor is oblivious of the effects of his poor
performance to businesses and city residents. There is an imminent risk of an
outbreak of waterborne diseases especially during the rainy season. Already,
there are reports by city traders that customers have stopped visiting some of
the city streets due to insecurity, flooding and filth. Traders are losing
businesses. On the international front, the city needs to be at its best to
attract investors, tourists and host international conferences. Why would an
investor choose a disorderly city when Kigali is offering order, a sparkling
environment and other reliable services?
As the Swahili saying goes, mwenye macho haambiwi tazama. One does not need a magician or a
miracle performing pastor to notice the deteriorated state of the city. The
governor oozes so much incompetence, he is plan less, visionless, and clueless.
Sonko says he is doing his best, but again- any reasonable man would expect
Sonko’s best to be mediocre as is.
The governor’s failures have caught the attention of
other leaders, including President Uhuru Kenyatta who recently tasked Sonko to
hire youths to clean up the city instead of paying over Sh700 million to
contractors for no work done. During a recent television interview, the
Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
(UNCTAD), Dr.Mukhisa Kituyi courageously noted that Sonko was never fit to be the
capital’s governor, of course we all knew this but we were blinded by bad politics
and party colours.
Enough said, Sonko needs to spare city dwellers the
pain occasioned by his underperformance. He needs to come up with effective
ways to implement his ten-point manifesto. He can hire experts, managers and
strategic thinkers with proven competence. He does not have to do it himself,
after all he was to be the political head with his deputy, Polycarp Igathe
doing the dirty work. Secondly, he should steer clear of petty arguments and
side shows on social media and focus on his work. He should develop a strategic
plan for the city with specific areas of focus and timelines. This will help
him deliver tangible results.
Once real work is done, he will
not need to post it on Facebook or twitter, he will not need to hire bloggers
to trend his working pictures, and neither will he require TV documentaries to
publicize his work. As the saying goes, development is like pregnancy, you
cannot hide it, everyone can see it. Alternatively, Sonko should stop crying
all over about Kidero, cartels and so on and just resign like his deputy did.
He is the chef here, if the Kitchen is too hot let him give room to someone
else for the love of Nairobi.
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