Zubeida vs Sakaja Duel Lights Up Nairobi Gubernatorial Debate (VIDEO)

Other than the wildly entertaining duel between Nairobi gubernatorial candidates, Senator Johnson Sakaja and Polycarp Igathe, the other duel involved Sakaja and KTN News' Zubeida Koome during the 2022 Nairobi gubernatorial debate.

The back and forth which served as fodder for conversation across the country on Monday, July 11 began when Sakaja was put to task regarding his degree saga, sparked by Igathe who claimed that his degree certificate from Team University in Uganda was doctored.

Igathe then waded in by even questioning the integrity of the name 'Sakaja', as part of ascertaining whether it was his real name.

Watch a video of the duel:

Zubeida: is your names Sakaja?
Sakaja: Is your name Zubeida?
Zubeida: I'm the one asking the questions
Sakaja: If you ask unnecessary questions I give you unnecessary answer!
Zubeida: Just tell us if your name is Sakaja
Sakaja: Who did you invite?#NairobiGovDebate2022 pic.twitter.com/bVMnEgJ4nY — Citizen TV Kenya (@citizentvkenya) July 11, 2022

But the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) candidate was annoyed when Zubeida, who was moderating the debate alongside Mark Masai of NTV, asked the same question.

This then led to a bitter exchange between the two, with the excerpt of the back-and-forth reading like this:

Zubeida: is your name Sakaja?

Sakaja: Is your name Zubeida?

Zubeida: I'm the one asking the questions

Sakaja: If you ask unnecessary questions I give you an unnecessary answer!

Zubeida: Just tell us if your name is Sakaja

Sakaja: Who did you invite?

Sakaja then set the record straight by revealing that his real names were 'Arthur Johnson Sakaja' and turned into the debate's moderator, asking Zubeida questions about the real issues that were facing Nairobians.

Being a debate of national interest, the spat went viral across the country and led to a heated debate with some siding with Zubeida and others criticising her for being biased.

"That question "Is your name Sakaja" will go down in history as evidence of what professional journalism is not!" Music Copyright Society of Kenya (MCSK) CEO, Ezekiel Mutua, wrote.

"Zubeida is a good journalist. No. Not all roles befit your good standard. Limit. 

"Who saw how that Ayub of K24 performed? Kenyan Media has a future if such nexters existed in every media house," Neok weighed in.

The gubernatorial debate took place at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA) main campus in Karen, Nairobi. This will be the same venue that will host the Deputy Presidential and Presidential debates. 

The Deputy Presidential debate will take place first on Tuesday, July 19 with the Presidential debate taking place on Tuesday, July 26, two weeks before the August 9 general elections. All of them will run from 5.00 pm to 10.00 pm. 

The moderators, the Presidential Debates secretariat explained, were selected based on rigorous criteria that, among other things, endear the principles of impartiality, fairness and objectivity, a strong understanding of the Kenyan political landscape and the major issues of the election, especially in Nairobi County. 

"Under the presidential debates rules, the moderators will select the questions to be asked and shall not share the same with the candidates. They will not meet with any of the campaign teams or candidates and the candidates," added the statement. 

However, the secretariat did not disclose the names of the moderators for the Deputy Presidential and Presidential debates, with speculation already being rife regarding top names such as Yvonne Okwara of Citizen TV being among the favourite picks for the debates. 

Azimio flagbearer Raila Odinga, UDA's William Ruto, Roots Party's George Wajackoyah and Agano's David Mwaure will square off in the Presidential debates, sharing visions for the country to Kenyans watching at home, live on TV.