Former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko has claimed that the late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga offered money to senators to support his impeachment in 2020, linking his removal from office to a dispute over planned demolitions in Nairobi.
Sonko made the allegations while giving his defence before Milimani Anti-Corruption Court Magistrate Isabella Barasa, where he revisited the political events he says preceded his ouster.
According to Sonko, Raila allegedly went to a parking area and offered senators money to vote in favour of his removal.
He did not provide independent evidence in the account presented to support the bribery allegation, which has not been established by a court.
Sonko told the court that his political troubles escalated after he rejected a proposal to demolish homes and evict residents to facilitate the expansion of a sewer line serving Northlands, a property associated with the Kenyatta family.
He said he was approached over the proposed exercise but refused to approve it because there was no clear compensation plan for families that would be displaced.
“I could not agree to demolish people’s homes without compensation,” Sonko told the court as he sought to explain the events that he claims contributed to his fallout with powerful political figures.
Sonko has made similar claims publicly before, including in July 2026, when he linked his fallout with former President Uhuru Kenyatta to disagreements over infrastructure serving the Northlands development.
The former governor told the court that after rejecting the demolition proposal, pressure mounted on him to surrender key Nairobi County functions to the national government.
In February 2020, Sonko signed an agreement transferring several functions to the national government, paving the way for the creation of the Nairobi Metropolitan Services. The transfer became politically contentious, with some leaders at the time questioning its implications for the county government.
Shortly after his removal in December 2020, Sonko publicly claimed senators had faced pressure from their political parties and alleged that Sh2 million had been offered to influence the vote. Those claims were not established as fact by the courts.
The Senate removed Sonko from office in December 2020 after upholding impeachment charges brought by the Nairobi County Assembly.
He later challenged the process through the courts.
In July 2022, however, the Supreme Court upheld his impeachment, finding that the County Assembly and Senate proceedings had complied with the law and that Sonko had been given adequate time and opportunity to respond to the charges against him.
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