The inaugural Nairobi gubernatorial debate on Monday, July 11, saw leading candidates engage each other in a heated session that was moderated by journalists Mark Masai and Zubeida Kananu.
The debate started at 8 pm - initially Igathe having a solo session after his opponent failed to show up on time.
After 15 minutes, Sakaja arrived at CUEA where the Presidential Debates Committee was hosting the debate alongside its partners - Kenyans.co.ke being among them. Here are the highlights of the debate:
Sakaja Degree Fiasco
Sakaja maintained that he was qualified to run for governor, stating that he was ready to make available his degree from Team University to the public for scrutiny.
"I have a degree and in fact, I would want to display it today for all of you to see it. I don't know how you will be able to verify it but the competent authorities institutions that have to verify it have actually said that it is correct," he stated
Igathe accuses him of presenting wrong documents and asked Kenyans to compare the academic credentials he presented in 2017.
“Go to the website of IEBC and check the degree that Senator Sakaja cited as his degree in 2017 and look at the one he is saying it is today. We do not even know who he is. Is your name really Sakaja?” Igathe posed.
Integrity Question
After the questions on Sakaja’s degree ended, both candidates accused each other of having questionable integrity. The debate started with Igathe complaining about the problems of cartels - which, according to Sakaja was an excuse used by lazy leaders.
"Cartel is a weak excuse by politicians who fail to master the courage to deal with corruption. If you know them, name them."
The UDA candidate further claimed that Igathe was already being funded by shadowy figures - insisting that he would table the evidence on Tuesday morning, July 12, on his Twitter account.
The Jubilee candidate responded by promising to file his own evidence on false documents that were allegedly signed by the senator.
Igathe a softie?
Sakaja accused Igathe of being soft, blaming him for the takeover by the Nairobi Metropolitan Services. He opined that if Igathe had thick skin, former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko would not have been impeached and that he would have probably been the governor.
"I am tickled about Igathe talking about push coming to shove and me not making a decision. In four-five months, Igathe quit on the people of Nairobi, which should have come in the question of integrity
"When you talk about public trust at the expense of private convenience, that is a question that remains unanswered. Sonko would have not faced impeachment if you had stayed in office. In fact, if you had stayed, there would be no NMS in Nairobi. The reason we have NMS is that Igathe could not stand the heat in the kitchen, he ran away."
Igathe defended himself - noting that he had made a personal choice not to occupy an office where he could not deliver on the promises to Kenyans.
"I did not quit on the citizens of Nairobi. I fell on my sword and failed to earn the trust of those I was with. But I have come back to run the race and win so that I can serve the people and build a better city."
Quick tackles
A debate is not complete without some one-line tackles between the candidates. At one time, while Sakaja argued with the debate moderators, Igathe dropped a one-liner.
"Ukosefu Wa nidhamu ni tabia ya watu hawajamaliza shule! (Indiscipline is common among school dropouts).
Sakaja on Nairobi being a rough city. “Igathe ran away from the mandate given to him by Kenyans; if you cannot withstand the heat of a deputy governor, you can't run Nairobi City County. This city needs resilience. You need to be tough.”
Sakaja on his Igathe’s job-switching history: "My deputy governor Njoroge Muchiri, who has promised not to resign, has had a proper corporate career not two-year stints here and there."
Igathe on Sakaja's lateness 'Karibu mdosi, tuta-sort traffic (Welcome boss, we will sort the traffic problem in Nairobi)
