Anne Kananu Mwenda sworn in as Nairobi deputy governor

Anne Kananu Mwenda has officially been sworn in as Deputy Governor for Nairobi County.

Ms. Mwenda took the oath of office at Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) grounds immediately after she was vetted and her nomination approved by the Nairobi County Assembly, all in a hurriedly conducted process.

She appeared before the County Assembly’s vetting committee on Friday morning and around noon the House had convened for a special sitting to adopt the vetting report, which was supported by a majority of the MCAs.

In the meantime, preparations for her swearing in were underway at KICC with a judge on standby to conduct the swearing in, which happened shortly before 2pm.

It was reported there was an attempt by some parties to stop the swearing in through filing of an application in court.

In a brief speech that lasted six minutes, Ms. Mwenda expressed her jubilation saying “this is the day that the lord has made that we may be glad and rejoice in it.”

She expressed her gratitude to President Uhuru Kenyatta for supporting her and impeached Governor Mike Sonko for nominating her to the position.

“It is with great honour of my life to stand before you having taken oath of office to serve as deputy governor. I would first and foremost thank President Uhuru Kenyatta for showing his faith in me to serve in this position. I would in the same vein thank Mike Mbuvi Sonko for nominating me to this position,” she said.

Ms. Mwenda affirmed her commitment to work closely with the Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) led by Maj-Gen Mohammed Badi.

“I today affirm my commitment to serve the people of Nairobi with dedication, discipline and integrity. I also commit to work and cooperate closely with NMS Director General Maj. Gen. Mohamed Badi and his team to ensure the transferred functions are further strengthened and supported to meet aspirations of the people of Nairobi,” said Ms. Mwenda.

Anne Kananu Mwenda, Deputy Governor, Nairobi: I thank President Kenyatta for showing his faith in me to serve in this position. I affirm my commitment to serve Nairobians with dedication…I commit to cooperate closely with NMS DG Maj. Gen. Badi and the Nairobi County Assembly pic.twitter.com/chDHBxS3SL

— Citizen TV Kenya (@citizentvkenya) January 15, 2021

Impeached Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko nominated Ms. Mwenda, the county’s Disaster Management and Coordination Sector Chief Officer, to the position of Deputy Governor on January 6, last year.

The nomination, however, hit a hurdle after the High Court barred the vetting of Ms. Mwenda by the County Assembly pending the hearing and determination of the petition filed by Peter Odhiambo Agoro.

In the petition, Agoro argued that Sonko had violated court orders by making the nomination since at the time, Anti-Corruption Court magistrate Douglas Ogoti had barred Sonko from accessing office after he was charged with graft.

The petition was withdrawn early this year, paving the way for the vetting of Ms. Mwenda.

The office of Nairobi Deputy Governor has been vacant since January 2018 following the resignation of Polycarp Igathe.

With Ms. Mwenda now in office as deputy governor this means there will be no by-election in Nairobi to replace Sonko who was impeached as county boss in December last year.

She is set to take over the Governor’s office, which is currently held by Speaker Benson Mutura on acting capacity, for the remaining term until 2022 when fresh elections will be held.