City Affairs

Tenants of government estates on Jogoo Road petition court to halt evictions

The Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi. (Photo: File)

By Joseph Ndunda | Wednesday, March 6, 2024

The estate has a total of 365 housing units mainly occupied by civil servants and a few others who are not government employees.

Ten tenants residing in the government's estates along Jogoo Road in Nairobi, earmarked for demolition to pave the way for modern housing under the Affordable Housing Programme, have filed a petition with the high court seeking to suspend their impending evictions.

The estate has a total of 365 housing units mainly occupied by civil servants and a few others who are not government employees.

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The Ministry of Lands, Housing, and Public Works issued a 60-day notice on February 29, instructing residents to vacate by April 30, 2024, to facilitate the demolition and subsequent construction of new residences.

Led by Kennedy Ochuodho, the petitioners argue that the eviction decision violates their constitutional rights, citing a lack of consultation and public participation in the planning process, potentially rendering them homeless.

The litigants contend that the houses are currently fully occupied and have been subjected to recent government-led renovations, including painting, road repairs, and parking enhancements, implying no immediate need for demolition.

They further say the houses are 100 per cent perfect for occupancy and are as a result fully occupied.

Seeking to halt the project, the petitioners urge the high court to suspend the evictions pending a full hearing, emphasizing the financial hardships faced by junior civil servants, such as government drivers and clerks, who constitute the estate's low-income earners.

Ochuodho, in his affidavit, highlights the tenants' inability to afford alternative accommodation within the short notice period.

"The Jogoo Road Phase 2 estate houses civil servants who fall within the lower income grades, such as government drivers, clerks, cleaners whose housing allowance ranges from as low as Sh4,000 to Sh6,500 per month," says Ochuodho in an affidavit supporting his application.

"The said individuals therefore are not financially capable of raising the amounts required to pay deposits and rent that they will be required to in commercial spaces, especially in the short period of two months."

They further argue that the government's decision lacks constitutional legitimacy, failing to adhere to Article 10's principles of public participation and neglecting the tenants' grievances, potentially violating their right to education by disrupting their children's schooling.

'"These principles rendered obsolete in that the (government) has neglected the concerns of the (tenants) who are likely to be rendered homeless and destitute by the said decision to evict them from their homes," the suit papers read in part.

The residents seek the court's intervention to address their concerns and safeguard their constitutional rights amidst the looming threat of eviction from their homes.