- The Senate Committee invited the Nairobi City Governor for the first time on November 30, 2022.
- One year down the line, the Governor is said to have never showed up at the committee meetings despite being invited and later summoned.
Image: PCS
A Senate Committee has fined Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja Sh500,000 for skipping its summons for a year.
The county chief has snubbed the Roads, Transportation and Housing Committee since November last year which has now put him in trouble with the panel.
The governor is being sought to answer questions on the city regeneration programme that will see many residents ‘evicted’ from their current residences.
The committee chaired by Kiambu Senator Karungo Thang’wa said the Governor’s failure to appear before is contemptuous.
Thang’wa said the governor, through the acting county secretary, wrote to the committee on Monday evening indicating his absence as he had travelled abroad.
“It has taken a year for the Governor to appear before this committee to address the plight of his residents yet he is dining with the Kings and Queens and going abroad,” Thang’wa said.
“The Governor is consequently fined Sh500,000. He is directed to cut short his trip wherever he is and appear before this committee on Thursday. The committee does not believe that he has travelled out of the country,” Thang’wa added.
The committee also wants the Nairobi County boss to avail travel manifest upon his return to prove that he travelled out of the country.
The chairpersons of residents’ associations that are set to be affected by the looming mass ‘evictions’ had requested a meeting with the Committee to apprise the Committee of the concerns of the residents of the targeted estates regarding the ongoing programme of urban regeneration and renewal.
Ofafa Jericho, Jericho Lumumba, California and Ofafa Maringo estates are among the 13 estates in the Eastlands area earmarked for re-development by the County Government of Nairobi.
Ofafa Jericho, Jericho Lumumba and Ofafa Maringo estates was a project that had been undertaken by the Israeli government in agreement with the Kenyan Government.
The residents of the New Pumwani -California estate had written a petition to the County Government of Nairobi requesting that the ownership of the houses be converted from a Social Housing Units to a Tenant Purchase Scheme for payment of mortgage for the houses but the petition had not been responded to.
The Committee requested for a response from the Governor, to provide a copy of the agreement between the Israeli Government and the Government of Kenya for construction of the estates through a Tenant Purchase Scheme.
Sakaja is expected to provide a copy of the report on the Urban Renewal Plan for Eastlands, a copy of development control guidelines for Eastlands, and the status of the response of the County Government to a Petition by residents of New Pumwani/California estate for conversion of social housing units to a Tenant Purchase Scheme.
“The committee requests for the status of the current ownership of the houses in the estates, a copy of title deeds for the parcels of land on which the estates are built and the original plans for the development of the estates,” reads a letter to Sakaja.
In addition, the committee wants Sakaja to provide an explanation of the circumstances under which a contractor was given approval for redevelopment of the New Pumwani-California estate and then demolished Flat C-5 on May 27, 2023.
“The governor should provide a statement of rent collected by the County Government of Nairobi since 1985 for Ofafa Jericho estate, 1988 for Jericho Lumumba estate and 1990 for Ofafa Maringo estate.”
This is after Kakamega lawmaker Boni Khalwale had also requested a Statement from the Standing Committee on Roads, Transportation and Housing regarding the status of operation of the Green Park terminus and the upgrade project of Uhuru Park and Central Park in Nairobi City County.
In the Statement, the Senator sought the committee to establish the cause of the delay in the operationalization of the Green Park Terminus that was set to commence in May 2022, in Nairobi City County.
In addition, Khalwale had asked the committee to explain the reasons for the non-completion of the upgrade of the project for Uhuru Park and Central Park that commenced in September 2021, and state the budgeted cost of the project and indicate the amount spent on the project so far.
“Could the committee state when the Bus Terminus will be operationalized and the Park Project completed,” Khalwale said.
However, Sakaja is yet to appear before the committee to respond to the issue raised by the Nairobi Eastlands Estates residents and Khalwale’s statement on the Greenpark Terminus project.
“The Estates are not just in Eastlands. The residents are not opposed to regeneration but want transparency. This is the height of disrespect not only to this committee but to the residents of Nairobi,” said Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna.
He went on:
“The governor has refused to appear before this committee to address this matter. This is absolute contempt. We cannot continue like this. Stop everything and suspend this program until we sort out this issue.”
Mohammed Chute (Marsabit) however charged that the developer should charge 70 per cent while the land owner should charge 30 per cent on the housing units being constructed.
“The Governor has refused to come before us. No deal should be entertained. If we don’t say no, our people will suffer,” said Chute.