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City Hall staff have asked Nairobi governor Ann Kananu to focus on the plight of workers instead of focusing more on her 2022 gubernatorial bid.
Through their Nairobi branch Union secretary Festus Ngari,the workers have lamented that the county currently lacks leadership, stating that activities are on autopilot mode.
The workers downed their tools of work once again, demanding that their statutory deductions be remitted immediately.
“We are asking the governor to come from wherever she is hiding so that we can address this matter. It cannot be that everyone is out there campaigning yet workers are suffering,” Ngare said.
The workers are demanding whereabouts on the alleged diversion of union funds totaling to Sh70 million for January.
The workers had early this month threatened to go on strike in 21 days over failure by City Hall and Nairobi Metropolitan Service (NMS) to remit Sh490.5 million in statutory deductions.
The more than 12,000 workers under the Kenya County Government Workers Union (KCGWU) are protesting failure by the two institutions to remit the statutory deductions for October and December.
KCGWU Secretary-General Roba Duba said the deductions include pension contributions, bank loans, Sacco loans, union dues as well as NHIF contributions.
“…We hereby demand that you immediately remit all deductions without any further delay whatsoever.Be warned, failure to pay all the deductions within 21 days will leave us with no option but to institute serious industrial action against you holding the concerned officers personally responsible as to attendant consequences thereof,” Duba said in a statement dated January 26.
The union raised the issue with CoB Margaret Nyakang’o calling for investigation and audit of the county government’s expenditure during the period under focus.
The pressure on Kananu to address the plight of workers piled last week when Utalii ward representative Wilson Ochola asked Governor Kananu to explain the source of her campaign funds.
The MCA questioned the drastic change in the operations of the city governor,stating that her high level political activities are suspect.
Ochola told journalists at City Hall that Kanunu’s political forays which include the endorsement from Njuri Njeke could be at the expense of the taxpayers money.
“ All of a sudden Kananu has money to run around the city,”Ochola added.
