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Council of Governors seeks solutions for Nairobi with Sonko on graft charges

By Amina Wako December 9th, 2019 2 min read

The Council of Governors (CoG) are planning an emergency meeting with President Uhuru Kenyatta to discuss the fate of Nairobi county following the arrest of Governor Mike Sonko.

In a statement that was issued on Sunday CoG Chairman Wycliffe Oparanya said the council was monitoring the situation and it would like the president to make his pronouncement over Nairobi which he described as unique.

“Following the arrest and detention of Mike Sonko, the Council of Governor is monitoring and consulting widely on the unfolding situation. We are, however, aware of the uniqueness of the county government and therefore we shall reach out to the president to convene an emergency summit to address the evolving situation,” the statement read.

This comes after the Nairobi Governor was arrested on Friday following allegations of graft by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC).

After concluding the investigation against the governor EACC handed over the documents to Director of Public Prosecution Noordin Haji who issued the warrant of arrest for the governor.

In the two cases of graft involving the governors both in Kiambu and Samburu, both were asked to stay away from their respective officers.

In Kiambu the deputy governor took over the running of the day to day county activities.

Nairobi’s case is different because the county has been running without a deputy governor since January 2018 when Polycarp Igathe resigned.

The absence of a deputy governor could mean Nairobi County Assembly Speaker Beatrice Elachi would be required to take over the helms of the county.

According to Article 182 of the Constitution of Kenya, if a vacancy occurs in the office of county governor and that of deputy county governor, or if the deputy county governor is unable to act, the Speaker of the County Assembly shall act as county governor.

If a vacancy occurs in the circumstances contemplated by clause (4), an election to the office of county governor shall be held within 60 days after the Speaker assumes the office of county governor.