Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko has accused the Nairobi Regional Coordinator and the Kibra Deputy County Commissioner of directly hampering his initiatives to fight the COVID-19 pandemic
In a long statement on his social media platform, Sonko lamented that the officers frustrating him were working under the instructions of Interior PS Karanja Kibicho to frustrate him, as they had allegedly confirmed to him.
"I am saddened by the vandalism that occurred earlier today, supervised by the Kibra Deputy County Commissioner who personally confirmed his ill actions to me.
"He was allegedly following instructions from the Nairobi Regional Coordinator, who also confirmed the same to my chief of staff, on the removal and vandalism of the new public sanitization booth that had been installed at the Kibra DCC's offices," Sonko alleged.
Sonko accused the individuals behind the vandalism as being hell-bent on punishing him but were instead punishing the members of the public set to benefit from the facilities he installed.
"Today’s action is not only evil but proof that indeed we have people in government who would rather have Kenyans die of the pandemic or starvation than see them helped by people they (government officers) don’t like politically," he wrote.
Sonko further lamented that all his efforts to make life easier for the people in the region were being frustrated yet his colleagues in other counties were allowed to do the very same things he was doing without inhibition.
"Recently, my colleague and Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho launched public sanitization booths in partnership with the Suleiman Shahbal Foundation, that are boldly emblazoned with the names of the two leaders, and nobody has had a problem with that.
"However, when Governor Sonko started distributing food to thousands of starving families in Nairobi’s informal settlements, the Provincial Administration was quick to ban the exercise.
"So far, just like other counties, millions of Nairobians are facing starvation, but they will not allow the Sonko Rescue Team to help the poor in our small way," Sonko wrote.
He further lamented about the suspension of the fumigation services and other charitable services being offered by the Sonko Rescue Team as a political decision by people alleging that he was stealing the shine from the newly formed Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS).
He insisted that such actions would only serve to the detriment of Kenyans and urged that the government to work in collaboration with private entities of whatever capacity to ensure a win in the war against the pandemic.
His sentiments were echoed by residents of Kibra who also insisted that they were open to receiving aid from anyone with the capacity and urged government forces to desist from harassing such individuals.
