When political deals silence oversight, it is the people who lose. Ruth Odinga has openly accused her brother Raila of betraying Nairobians by protecting Governor Johnson Sakaja from impeachment. Her rare rebuke has ripped open the truth — that even family ties cannot hide failed leadership.
The Facts
Nairobi MCAs had collected more than 70 signatures to impeach Sakaja over stalled bursaries, collapse of the Ward Development Fund, and neglect of residents’ needs. But the motion collapsed after Raila met ODM-allied MCAs at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Foundation, urging them to give Sakaja a month to “correct his mistakes.”
At the same time, President Ruto held a parallel meeting with UDA MCAs at State House to warn against impeachment. Together, the two leaders disarmed the motion and gave Sakaja a political lifeline.
For Nairobi residents struggling to pay fees as bursaries stall, this is not politics — it is betrayal. For the youth watching projects rot, this is proof that governors can fail with impunity if the right hands protect them. Oversight is the only shield the mwananchi has against incompetence, and now even that has been traded for political expediency.
The Law
Article 185 of the Constitution gives MCAs oversight powers over county executives. Article 10 enshrines accountability and transparency. By blocking the impeachment, political heavyweights undermined both the Constitution and the spirit of devolution. Oversight belongs to the people through their representatives — not to politicians striking deals behind closed doors.
Ruth Odinga’s words are a warning. If leaders keep silencing oversight for political convenience, Nairobi will remain trapped in incompetence while wananchi pay the price. Sakaja may have escaped impeachment for now, but the anger of Nairobians cannot be negotiated away.
