Businessman seeks removal of Nairobi Finance boss Charles Kerich from office

Title: Businessman seeks removal of Nairobi Finance boss Charles Kerich from office

A Nairobi businessman has moved to the High Court seeking to have Charles Kerich stripped of his position as the Nairobi City County Executive Committee Member for Finance, days after a magistrate's court handed him a three-month custodial sentence.

The petitioner, whose application was filed in the Constitutional and Human Rights Division of the High Court, argues that Kerich's continued occupation of public office following a criminal conviction is incompatible with the requirements of the Constitution and the County Governments Act. The law bars individuals convicted of an offence and sentenced to imprisonment of more than six months from holding public office, though the petition contends that the circumstances of Kerich's sentencing warrant his immediate removal regardless of the sentence length.

Kerich, who has served as Nairobi's finance chief under Governor Johnson Sakaja, was sentenced following a case whose details are before the court. His office oversees one of the most consequential fiscal portfolios in county government, managing a budget that runs into tens of billions of shillings annually for the capital city.

The case touches on a wider concern in Kenya's devolved governance system, where questions about the fitness of appointed county officials have repeatedly arisen but rarely resulted in swift action. Critics argue that county executives often remain in post during prolonged appeals processes, undermining accountability.

Kerich's legal team is expected to contest both the underlying conviction and any removal proceedings. Nairobi County Government had not issued a formal public statement on the matter at the time of filing, and Governor Sakaja had not publicly commented on whether he intended to act on the sentencing independently of the court petition.