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Wetang'ula orders House committee to grill Sakaja over Kenya Power garbage, sewage dump
Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja.
What you need to know:
- Mr Ichung’wah called on business owners who were affected by the action of the county to take legal action.
- Seme MP James Nyikal argued that the actions of the county government amounted to violation of public health.
National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula has directed the assembly’s committee on Administration and National security to summon the Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja to explain why action has not been taken against Governor Johnson Sakaja-led Nairobi City County Government for dumping garbage in front of Kenya Power offices.
"We shall not allow this country to be reduced to a state of wild, wasteful behavior where you disagree with someone, and you send goons and hooligans to sort out your mess. That is not Kenya, and it must stop. I therefore direct the Inspector General to establish why no action has been taken against this publicly known criminal behavior by the Nairobi City County Government," Speaker Wetang’ula ruled.
The action follows Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah’s proposal who had sought criminal action against the county government.
"What we have seen around Stima Plaza is nothing short of criminal acts. As I watched the news last night, I kept asking myself where are the police who should be ensuring law and order in this country? The Inspector General of Police must take decisive action, starting with the drivers who operated those trucks. It should be easy for the IG, through the DCI, to extract information on who these drivers were,” Mr Ichung’wah told MPs.
“If we allow this behaviour to go unchecked, we are empowering the very governors who, not too long ago, were demanding security officers under their command. Imagine if these governors had police officers at their disposal they would trample on everyone. That is why I call on the Inspector General of Police to take swift action against those responsible for dumping outside Stima Plaza,” he went on.
Mr Ichung’wah called on business owners who were affected by the action of the county to take legal action.
“Those who have had to shut down restaurants because of this mess to take civil action against the Nairobi City County Government for compensation due to lost business. Stima Plaza itself isn’t even owned by Kenya Power are just tenants there. The building belongs to pensioners our mothers and fathers who worked at Kenya Power and KenGen. Their livelihoods as landlords are now under threat because of the reckless actions of the county government,” Mr Ichung’wah said.
Seme MP James Nyikal argued that the actions of the county government amounted to violation of public health.
"Mr Speaker, it is not just the police that we should be questioning. What was done is a clear case of public nuisance, and under the Public Health Act, both the drivers and their superiors who sanctioned this act can be charged. They knowingly exposed people to garbage, which, as you have mentioned, can easily lead to an epidemic,” Dr Nyikal said.
National Assembly Majority Whip Sylvanus Osoro also condemned the action.
"We have created demigods in the name of governors, and their excesses must be checked. The cries of the business community around Stima Plaza must not be ignored. I saw on TV a woman who runs a restaurant near Stima Plaza someone who has no stake in the dispute between the county government and Kenya Power yet her business has suffered immensely,” said Mr Osoro.
He went on: “And this is not an isolated incident. It is not just about garbage. We have seen county officials move around in convoys of 30 vehicles one carrying a carpet, another carrying a toilet, another filled with goons, another transporting a chair, and even another carrying a chair cover all while causing chaos and disrupting people's businesses and lives.”
Mr Osoro called for the arrest of drivers of vehicles that were involved in the dump.
“The trucks that were parked outside, those that dumped garbage in that location, and those that blocked access for three days must be impounded. The drivers must be arrested and charged for their criminal actions. This impunity must stop,” Mr Osoro said.
Mr Sakaja on Wednesday February 26 announced that it had resolved all pending issues with Kenya Power following a meeting chaired by Head of Public Service Felix Koskei.