File image of Johnson Sakaja
Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja can breathe a sigh of relief after President William Ruto and ODM leader Raila Odinga persuaded Nairobi MCAs to drop an impeachment motion against him.
The decision to drop the motion against Governor Sakaja was arrived at following separate meetings convened by President Ruto and Raila in Nairobi.
ODM members held their meeting at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Foundation (JOOF), while the ruling UDA party members met at State House.
In the State House meeting, President Ruto urged the UDA MCAs to give Skaja two months to address the grievances they had raised.
“The president told us that he is not stopping us but was requesting dialogue to be given a chance. Consequently, we agreed on the condition that after 60 days, we are at liberty to reintroduce the bid if the governor doesn’t address our concerns,” one of the MCAs who attended the meeting said.
Governor Sakaja was not invited to the Tuesday meeting at State House, but is expected to attend a follow-up session on Wednesday.
Speaking after the meeting, Nairobi South MCA Waithera Chege said the impeachment motion against Sakaja had only been suspended, not withdrawn.
“The impeachment still stands, but we have agreed not to table it immediately. If the issues we raised are not addressed within 60 days, then we will proceed with the motion,” said Chege.
In the ODM meeting, Odinga persuaded the Nairobi MCAs to give Governor Sakaja time to address their grievances.
“We agreed to shelve the plan to impeach Sakaja for now after the meeting with our party leader. We will review the outcome after one month,” Nairobi West MCA Rex Omolleh said.
On Monday, ODM and UDA MCAs had gathered over 70 signatures out of the 123-member house to remove Governor Sakaja from office.
The MCAs accused Sakaja of failing to fulfil his campaign promises, delays in disbursing bursaries, and the stalled Ward Development Fund.
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