From grace to grass: Will the street-smart Sonko make another comeback?
Mike Sonko has many careers. He is a recording artiste known for his penchant to secretly record conversations; boxer because of his wall-punching prowess and he occasionally dabbles in politics, serving as an MP, senator and governor.
But on Friday, the curtains fell on his political career after a Supreme Court ruling that upheld his impeachment. Yesterday, he, however, said he would appeal and fight back.
A political career that began close to 12 years ago, the former jailbird rose from an MP in 2010 to a governor in only seven years. But it all looks dead now.
What makes this bitter for the son of Mzee Kivanguli is that the Supreme Court blow came after he was cleared by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission to contest the Mombasa gubernatorial seat on Thursday. He even seemed to have somehow warmed his way back to the national political scene, a case in point when he was part of President Uhuru Kenyatta’s entourage touring Nairobi on Tuesday.
If street-smart was a person, Mr Sonko would be him. The ex-Nairobi county boss is the real definition of being street-smart and knows how to play his cards like a seasoned poker player.
Known for his penchant for ruffling feathers and a mortar mouth that knows no bound, at least those he has dragged to infamy by his antics can now rest easy.
Or is it so? The CEO of “Sonko Leaks and Recording Studio” in November last year said he still has in store months’ worth of unreleased video and audio recordings which he will eventually make public.
“I will broadcast more to my followers; much more is coming. I have nothing to lose anymore. Even if I never go back into elective politics, I need to finish this war for the 40 million Kenyans who do not have a chance at justice,” he said then.
But what can’t he do? Mr Sonko’s political life has been an eventful one, which has seen him fall out with almost everyone he has come across. In fact, it is easier to count those he is yet to rub the wrong way than those who have been victims of his dirty machinations.
His antics, brash and unconventional behaviour has made him be loved and loathed in equal measure, but does he care!
Putting the President on loudspeaker, recording private conversations and posting them on social media, rolling on the road and punching walls, leaking private videos: he loves it that way.
Last year in November, the former Makadara MP went on video leaking spree starting with videos of a woman named Merry Nkatha spilling the beans on alleged graft schemes involving Nairobi Governor Ann Kananu, lawyer Cecil Miller, and High Court Judge Said Chitembwe.
Read also: Justice Juma Chitembwe trashes Sonko videos
This was preceded by video recordings, allegedly linking Mr Chitembwe to bribery in a disputed land court case, which has triggered a tribunal to probe the man.
Others who have fallen victim to Mr Sonko's secret recordings include ex-Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu, Polycarp Igathe, Starehe MP Charles Njagua, Esther Passaris, Nairobi businessmen Praful Kumar and Mark Maina.
But how many more dramatic fall from grace to grass stories will be written about the colourful former governor? As sure as the sun rises in the morning, many will. But he can always go back to other careers if politics locks the door on him.
