How Uhuru-Raila night meeting in Naivasha saved Nairobi from BBI purge

From his 26th floor office at KICC, Nairobi Senator Johnson Sakaja has a picturesque view of the city in all directions.

“If you tell me there is a fire, I just peep out of my window and look for the smoke to confirm if it’s there or not,” he tells the Nation. The senator, who is considered one of the young political eggheads, has been fighting fires this year as he has been embroiled in political and personal controversy in and out of the Senate.

The name of Mr Sakaja was dragged into the scandal after Procurement Manager Charles Juma told MPs said that on the day Mr Jonah Manjari ordered that a commitment letter be issued to Shop ‘N’ Buy, the senator was in the CEOs office. The information was confirmed by Mr Juma’s secretary Ms Pamela Kaburu.

In a wide-ranging interview with Political Editor Guchu Ndungú, the 35-year old senator speaks about the Uhuru-Raila night meeting that saved Nairobi in BBI, what he was doing at Kemsa, his governorship candidature, how government officials almost caused a rift between him and the President, Ruto and why he has taken it slow on clubbing.

Your name has come up during the Kemsa probe into how briefcase companies were awarded Covid-19 billions. Were you at Kemsa CEO’s office when the commitment letter to Shop N Buy was issued?

I have been to Kemsa CEO’s office in my capacity as the then chair of the Covid committee. I went to check their preparedness to fight coronavirus. I did not know what was happening. When I visit an office, normal work doesn’t stop and I do not tell them how to work.  I don’t know what is happening.  I also visited Kemri, Pumwani and other institutions dealing with Covid.

Do you own any of the companies directly or through proxy?

I am not a director or connected to any of the firms which won the tender. I own all my companies directly not through proxy. I am open to investigations and ready to face the consequences if it is proven that I benefitted either directly or indirectly from Covid tenders. It is an open secret that I have interests in advertising, farming and want to venture into manufacturing. But I do not do business with the government.

Nairobi as a county had been scrapped in the BBI 1 and it was to be run by the national government. Then in the harmonised changes, it was retained. What happened?

When we went to Naivasha in November, city MPs supporting BBI insisted that we will not touch a comma in the document and most accepted that Nairobi is gone. That Sunday evening before the Monday talks, we sat with Raila and Uhuru and made a case for the city. A few minutes later, we were joined by Senate Minority Leader James Orengo, National Assembly Majority Leader Amos Kimunya, Senate Majority Leader Samuel Poghisio. We made the case for Nairobi.  The following week, Makueni Senator Mutula Kilonzo and Bungoma Senator Moses Wetangula also picked it up. I am not one of those who believed that the document cannot be changed. But I fully support BBI.

Nairobi has been mismanaged despite having all the resources. Don’t you think Nairobians deserve a change in the system of governance?

What Nairobi needs is resources and goodwill. Look at what NMS is doing just because of working well with the government. We need leaders who can make tough decisions to restructure staff and improve revenue.  Nairobi should raise close to Sh100bn according to a review by audit firms.  We need to establish a bureaucracy that outlasts the politicians. There is no vision for Nairobi for the next 10 to 50 years. We need to have a plan that outlasts politicians.

Why didn’t you vote during Sonko impeachment?

The tradition has been that the senator of the county whose governor is being impeached abstains.  It is only during the last two impeachments in Kirinyaga and Kiambu that the senators voted. I think a senator voting on his governor can be misconstrued to be an implicit conflict of interest.

However, if there was a stalemate and my vote was the tiebreaker, I would have voted.

Will you vie for governor in the by-election?

No. I got a five-year mandate and will wait it out. Remember he can be kicked out or retained.

Even in 2022?

It is still too early but I will either seek re-election, vie for governor or MP in Nairobi. I am not running in Transzoia as some people have indicated. I was born in the city and brought up here. But in 2027, I will run for President.

Some Jubilee leaders, citing your position on Division of Revenue Bill and other matters, regard you as a rebel against President Kenyatta…

These are people who want to drive a wedge between me and the President yet we have known each other for long. He appointed me to head TNA when I was 28 years old. And some of them are people whom we had worked together with in the past. They even sponsored billboards across the city against me.

I had to find a way of reaching out to the President and telling him that we may disagree on some issues, but I remain loyal to him.  He’s a democrat and he understood my position.

You have been sending mixed signals on whether you are pro-handshake or in tanga tanga. What is your stand?

I support the handshake between President and Raila Odinga. As a Jubilee leader, I also respect Deputy President William Ruto as he is our deputy party leader. However, the approach to the handshake could have been done better. DP should have been assured that it was not about 2022. I think Raila can be a good transition president while Ruto can be an efficient leader. Musalia Mudavadi would, however, make a good compromise candidate too. But for now, Uhuru has my total support.

Will Jubilee survive the Handshake?

It may not last long because it is run badly. People want to own it and there is too much infighting like what happened between the Secretary-General Raphael Tuju and Deputy Party leader William Ruto over by-elections. That should not happen.

You were arrested for flouting Covid rules. Do you support them?

I apologised and atoned. But I think we should relax some of the rules because people are suffering. Artistes, entertainers and others do not have a livelihood. Some artists are selling even their guitars and pianos. We can strike a balance.

Did the arrest change you?

Yes, it did. I have not been to a club since then.