Nairobi: Residents take to streets to protest against poor planning after floods disaster

By , May 16, 2024

‘Colonialism never really ended, Sakaja must go, poverty is modern-day slavery’ were the words on their placards as Nairobi residents took to the streets on Thursday, May 16, to protest against poor city planning.

In videos shared by The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), the residents aired their frustrations attributing the flooding that led to loss of lives and destruction of property to poor planning of the County.

They voiced their grievances, directing their frustration towards Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja.

They decried the lack of regulation in building construction, with structures springing up without proper paperwork or adherence to planning standards.

Blame was squarely placed on Sakaja’s office, with protesters accusing him of turning a blind eye to the corruption under his watch.

“We are here as residents of Nairobi County to protest the obvious corruption that has made this city unlivable. We have seen situations where buildings are coming up unregulated, without proper paperwork, the planning. And all these is being sanctioned from Sakaja’s office. There is no way he can pretend and say he does not know this corruption is happening,” one of the protesters said.

Adding;

“What we are asking him is ‘how long do you think you are going to stay in that office, and leave Nairobi in the state it is and it’s not gonna come back and bite you? Look at your colleagues, how many are now in court for the crimes they did? You might be sitting pretty and ignoring our calls to even have meetings, but we are here this morning as Nairobi residents to tell you that we are still on your case and even when we are done protesting, we will come up with other measures even if it’s going to court for you to hear us.”

Flooding city

As the heavy rains continued to pound most parts of the country over the past weeks, Nairobi County was not spared with thousands displaced, lives lost and businesses disrupted.

Some were left stranded on roads as major roads were cut off by the flashfloods.

According to updates from Kenya Red Cross, hardest hit areas in Nairobi were Mukuru, Mathare, Huruma, Ruaraka, Baba Dogo, Bosnia, Umoja 3, Choka, Njiru, Ruai, Utawala, Githurai, Kahawa, Eastern Bypass, Kinoo, Kijabe, Limuru, Ruiru, Graceland, Joska, Kaswito, Kicheko, Mangili, Kenyatta Road, Juja, Kitengela, and Magadi.

According to the government report, the crisis has left 411,825 individuals and 58,009 households displaced in Nairobi alone.

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