Man seeks to have top City Hall officials barred from office over questionable garbage deal
According to the petitioner, it was illegal for the five to be involved in the registration of the company as directors and shareholders
A petitioner has moved to the High Court seeking to have senior officers in the Nairobi City County Government barred from holding public office over alleged shady engagements with a garbage collection company
Court documents seen by The Informer Media Group indicate that the petitioner, Stephen Nyaga, wants the court to declare the executive members, who have shares in Green Nairobi Limited, unfit to hold public office for gross violation of the Constitution.
Nyaga is also seeking to have the five, including the County Executive Committee Member (CEC) for Environment (Green Nairobi), Maureen Njeri, Finance CEC Charles Kerich, Chief Officer for Finance Asha Abdi, Acting County Secretary Godfrey Akumali, and Environment Chief Officer Geoffrey Mosiria be prohibited from holding their offices and executing their duties until the petition is heard and determined.
According to the petitioner, it was illegal for the five who serve in the county to be involved in the registration of the company as directors and shareholders.
“The Petitioner noted overwhelming illegalities, irregularities, and circumvention of the law that were done by the Respondents in their capacities as Members of the Nairobi City County Government executive team. There was an intention and motive to illegally, unlawfully, and irregularly misuse and mismanage public funds and resources by the Respondents,” Nyaga stated in his petition.
High Court judge Justice Bahati Mwamuye directed that the respondents be served with the petition by last Friday, as he ordered that they file a response at the end of this month.
The case shall be mentioned on the 30th of June, as the court is expected to give direction on the requests in the petition.
The petition comes after details recently details at the registrar of companies indicated that the five county executive members are shareholders and directors of the company registered in October last year and is meant to take over garbage collection in the county kicking out private contractors.
Members of the Nairobi County Assembly have raised questions on why the setting up of the company was done without the consultation of the Assembly.
Kariobangi North MCA Joel Munuve says the lack of Consultation from Nairobians by the County is a big mess as they are the ones who will be receiving services from the company.
According to the MCA, the setting of the company was premeditated way before as he claims the shareholders and directors are his friends and that it’s not a move to finish cartels in the environment sector but creating a bigger menace.
Munuve has claimed that the last cabinet reshuffle by the city governor was part of the strategy of forming the company using his friends.
“What the governor has done is kill one cartel to create a bigger one. The creation of the company was all premeditated because when you even look at the cabinet reshuffle that was done last, his friends were moved back to the sectors that are critical in the formation of the company (Environment and Finance),” Munuve stated.
Kileleshwa MCA Robert Alai states this is not the first time the county is illegally privatising sectors without the involvement of the Assembly.
According to the legislator, the County Assembly is part and parcel of the devolved unit, hence such crucial matters must be done in consultation with lawmakers.
He accused the Assembly leadership of laxity on oversight, as he adds that the MCA’s cannot question something as the leadership bars them.
“There is the question of the legal formation of the company. The Assembly is part and parcel of the county, and they ought to have been consulted by it being brought to the plenary first. There is the laxity of leaders of the assembly, both the majority and minority, as they do not allow members to properly oversight the executive,” Alai stated.
Alai adds that there needs to be a change in polices to end cartels in the environmental sector and not the formation of a company.
“The cartel is huge and cannot be ended by forming a company. That is even expanding it more. What Nairobi needs to do is change policies in the Environment sector and go back to providing services to its residents. Some services, such as garbage collection, ought not to be expensive,” he adds.
The governor has, however, defended the formation of the company, previously saying it will operate like the Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company to enhance efficiency and kick out private companies profiting at the expense of service delivery.
His remarks were supported by the Assembly minority leader and Waithaka MCA Anthony Kiragu, who stated that the company was formed legally through the Nairobi County Corporation Act 2019, which was passed by the Assembly.
Kiragu states that there is no need for any consultations from the legislators as the Cooperation Act for 2019 stipulates clearly what needs to be done.
“No consultations were needed from the Assembly. The governor simply used the Nairobi City County Corporations Act 2019. And the environment sector, just like water and Sewerage, has become so big that it can no longer be a department. The formation of Green Nairobi is timely and effective,” Kiragu stated.
The minority leader affirmed that the Green Army employees shall be absorbed by the company.
According to Kiragu, the directors who are the office holders are under the sector they head, and that the people who come after them shall be the next holders if they are sacked or reshuffled.
While the county stated that the move is aimed at curbing the garbage cartels in the city, a response filed by the environment department to the Select Committee for Environment at the Assembly indicates that the non-payment of contractors by the finance department is part of the reason for the move to create the company.
The department also revealed that the contract for private garbage collectors expires next week, as they to serve for 24 months since April 2023.
The environment committee is expected to have a sitting with the Green Nairobi CEC and her Chief Officer tomorrow after they failed to appear last week to shed more details on the company.
