Fill service delivery gaps in Nairobi County

It is a fact that millions of Kenyans live below the poverty line. It is also a fact that it is an uphill task for many to put food on the table, put a roof over their head and lead a dignified life.

As a developing country, a huge population is barely eking out a living in a highly capitalist and increasingly individualised society. The communal system of yester years is long gone and it is normal to have a family sleep hungry while their next-door neighbours throw away food.

Some basic items like bread and milk could be luxuries to some families, while for their neighbours, these are dog food. Numerous surveys have indicated that the gap between the rich and the poor is widening at an alarming rate. Something must be done and urgently.

Nowhere is the above scenario most prevalent than in Nairobi County. The once green city in the sun is today home to some of the poorest Kenyans, living in slums. With a ballooning population the city is seemingly overwhelmed where crucial services have taken a big hit. Transport, health, housing, environment and social services have been stretched to the limit and the County Government has become a punching bag from all corners.

Governor Evans Kidero is at the helm of a county government weighed down by numerous challenges, but this is no excuse for not delivering on his election pledges. Majority of Nairobians (including business people) have for years provided services, including paving roads, security, water, garbage collection, and electricity, due to failure by the City County and national government to provide these services.

Still, philanthropy and what Nairobi Senator Mike Sonko’s rescue team is doing are worlds apart. Indeed, the Senator is doing the right thing but the wrong way. Philanthropy is well structured, focused on the bigger picture and always aims at liberating a poor people from the perennial begging bowl in hand.

Leading philanthropists have been associated with sustainable projects that have drastically changed people’s lives. Majority also usually set up a revolving fund where future generations in distress could also get help and ease their financial woes. Sonko’s free ambulances, wedding limousines and burial hearses are not sustainable.

They may ease trouble for a few people now, but do they offer a lasting solution to the challenges facing the city, today and in the future? We suggest that the Senator, besides his ‘helping hand’ to the common man, introduce visionary policies through the Senate and other arms of government. Why not work with the current national or county government to offer solutions to the numerous problems bedeviling the city?

The Senator has certainly helped dozens of individuals in distress including veteran actor, Mzee Ojwang’, who is ailing in hospital.

That is as it should be for not only elected leaders but also able individuals in the society. Sonko, as an elected leader, should help boost systems such as health centres so that cases of residents being unable to access decent healthcare, are reduced significantly. Being in a position of responsibility, it is not beyond the Senator to demand and mobilise enough resources for the county government to hire functional ambulances, firefighters and garbage trucks. It would be a tragedy not to do that only on account that the current county government is not politically aligned to his affiliation.

Finally, the national and county government must constantly seek to fill the gaps in service delivery. When residents are turned into mere beggars, there is a danger of creating a dependency syndrome.

The poor youths are then forced to hero-worship those dishing out money. Kenya’s capital deserves better than freebies.

The city should offer equal opportunities for individuals to raise proper families and create wealth for their siblings and future generations. This is not beyond the Senator and the county government.

City residents voted for you to provide visionary leadership and help the capital head to the right direction of prosperity and firm foundations. Political goodwill and unity of purpose will help address these challenges. The County Government must put its house in order and provide these crucial services.