NAIROBI, Kenya November 11 – Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko has vowed to move to court after more than two-thirds of MCAs voted against his memorandum in which he refused to approve the 2020/2021 budget worth Sh37.5 billion
The Nairobi Governor alleges that individuals working with State House are seeking to allocate the funds to the Nairobi Metropolitan Service (NMS) led by Major Badi at the expense of his administration.
Sonko said the MCAs illegally want to allocate funds meant for City Hall despite the clear separation of powers after four key functions were transferred to the national government.
“After being conned the money of the untransferred functions,I have done through research on the law. Let us meet in the courts,” he said.
According to the Governor, the Electronic Voting System of Nairobi County Assembly was manipulated to block many MCAs from voting against the Bill.
“MCAs who voted NO against the Bill ended having their votes appearing in the system as YES. The Electronic System also allowed people who were not MCAs to vote through the System. It is a fact that Nairobi County Assembly standing orders do not allow electronic voting.
Sonko reiterated the need to align the budget according to the law and as per the provisions of the Public Finance Management Act.
He further cited the case in Bomet where Justice Lenaola rejected the County’s Appropriation Bill which was prepared contrary to the provisions of the Public Finance Management Act and did not confirm with the CIDP,CFSP, and budgetary ceilings.
A month ago, the Nairobi County Assembly passed the Sh37.5 billion budget allocating NMS Sh27.1 billion while Sonko’s administration received Sh6.4 billion.
Nonetheless, Sonko declined to assent to the Nairobi City County Appropriation Bill, 2020, citing a budget deficit.
The Governor accused the County Assembly of illegal amendments to the budget saying proposed cuts on key budget votes have the potential of paralyzing county operations.
“I refuse to assent to the Nairobi City County Appropriation Bill, 2020 and refer it back to the Nairobi County Assembly for consideration,” Sonko stated.
The Governor also lamented the allocation of entire budget lines for functions transferred to to the Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) to the agency domiciled in the Office of the President.
