Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja, who built part of his political brand on defending devolution and opposing the Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS), now faces his toughest test after confirming that his administration is “partnering” with the national government.
The deal is on garbage collection, road works, sewer connections and other core county functions.
He had previously vowed there would be no repeat of the NMS arrangement or transfer of devolved responsibilities to the national government, even as state agencies have increasingly taken a visible role in service delivery across the city.
Yet national agencies have been visibly executing road construction and waste management across the city for the past two years, with the National Youth Service playing a prominent role on the ground.
The arrangement comes even as the governor continues to publicly fault the defunct NMS for leaving City Hall in what he describes as a “complicated state.”
In his State of the County address on Wednesday, Mr Sakaja insisted there had been no surrender of authority, framing his recent engagement at State House as structured cooperation rather than a constitutional handover.
“It’s a partnership, not a transfer of functions,” he said, maintaining that discussions with President William Ruto and relevant state departments amount to coordinated service delivery in a capital city that cannot afford dysfunction.
“I honour the mandate given to me by the people of Nairobi. They entrusted me with constitutional authority, and I will not betray that trust,” he told MCAs, pledging fidelity to the Constitution and to the protection of devolution.
Mr Sakaja invoked the legacy of the NMS, arguing that the arrangement left the county burdened with Sh16 billion in pending bills and administrative complications.
Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja (left) and County Assembly Speaker Kennedy Ng’ondi, address supporters outside City Hall after delivering the State of the County address in Nairobi on February 11, 2026.
Photo credit: Wilfred Nyangaresi | Nation Media Group
“In 2020, Nairobi got into a misadventure. The NMS experience left the county with a Sh16 billion pending bills burden, and we shall not transfer any county functions,” he said.
At the same time, he confirmed that his administration is in talks with President Ruto on areas of collaboration aimed at improving service delivery, including road infrastructure, garbage collection, waste management, water distribution and street lighting.
“Collaboration with the national government is not only inevitable, but it is also encouraged,” he said, echoing sentiments previously expressed by the late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga on the need to safeguard devolution.
“We must protect devolution. It is the biggest gift given to the people of Kenya by our law,” he added.
The governor’s remarks came amid growing concern over a recent State House meeting where areas of cooperation were agreed upon. President Ruto has since indicated that the national government has injected additional resources into the capital and will formally take over waste management in April, comments that have intensified scrutiny of the scope of the partnership.
The address drew mixed reactions, with a section of Members of the County Assembly initially boycotting the special sitting convened to hear his speech. It took the intervention of Majority Whip Moses Ogeto to rally members back to the chamber.
In the same address, Mr Sakaja warned striking doctors to resume duty or face dismissal, underscoring the wider governance pressures confronting his administration.
However, under Article 187 of the Constitution, the transfer of a county function is not a matter of optics or semantics. It requires a formal deed of transfer, approval by the County Assembly, proof that the function can be better performed by the national government, and the transfer of attendant resources, including budgets, staff and assets.
Under the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution, county governments are explicitly responsible for county transport, including local roads, as well as water and sanitation services, refuse removal and solid waste management. If another level of government executes those mandates in practice, constitutional safeguards are triggered.
Baba Dogo MCA Geoffrey Majiwa.
Baba Dogo MCA Geoffrey Majiwa argues that if the national government is overseeing essential services including waste management, road construction and maintenance, housing and aspects of water services then the constitutional threshold becomes unavoidable, and a “partnership” cannot operate as a substitute for procedure.
“It is true that the governor has failed the residents for the past three years. He has done nothing,” Mr Majiwa said.
“He talks about collaboration, but what is the nature of this collaboration? There must be papers showing a transfer of functions, yet we are seeing none. It is a sad tragedy for Nairobi.”
“As MCAs, what we are saying is that the governor must leave office for failing Nairobi residents, and we are not going to quit,” he added.
Minority Leader Anthony Kiragu offered a more measured view, defending the governor’s record while backing cooperation with the national government.
“It is not necessarily a failure on the part of the governor. You have seen efforts such as the school feeding programme and improved roads,” he said.
Deputy Majority Whip Waithera Chege took a firmer stance, openly welcoming greater national involvement and faulting Mr Sakaja for failing to resolve Nairobi’s challenges.
“For a long time, we have been crying to the President about the governor’s performance. We support this fully,” she said.
“It is clear that the governor has failed in delivering his mandate. What we want now is the implementation of all the projects through the national government. Residents want better services, nothing else.”
She added, “We support the decision of the President to take over the services.”
