I have property near river, says Waititu as he explains hydro-modification

Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu on Wednesday revealed that he owns parcels of land in Nairobi that touch on the river but insisted he has no personal interests in the ongoing demolition of buildings on riparian land.

Waititu, who is the Chairman of Urban Development, Planning and Housing in the Council of Governors, defended his opposition to the ongoing demolitions saying owners of buildings on riparian land are only victims, hence, demolition should be a last alternative.

Speaking on Citizen TV’s Day Break show, the governor said he is representing innocent owners of buildings, “who rightfully own the land” adding that he understands the issues affecting Nairobi County.

“This is not personal. I have been a leader in this city, I understand the issues in Nairobi,” said Waititu.

During the interview, the show host, Waihiga Mwaura asked the Kiambu Governor : “Do you have land on riparian reserve?”

In response, Governor Waititu said: “No. Not on riparian. But I have pieces of land that are touching the river but I have not built houses.”

He added that he has no plans to construct on the said lands considering the ongoing demolition of buildings lying on Nairobi’s wetlands.

The governor insisted that the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) should have consulted various stakeholders in the property and building industry for a win-win solution to the encroachment on riparian land.

“The people planning the demolitions should form a big committee that will include the property owners and experts from property owners’ side so that all options are explored before any demolition is carried out,” said Waititu.

“There are so many people earning their living from these buildings, some of them have also been constructed with the help of loans and pension funds.

“Can you imagine how many people will suffer? They could be more than 30,000 people,” he added.

However, when asked why he did not raise his voice to stop the demolitions in Kibera, the governor said the Kibera demolitions were lawful as it was meant to pave way for the construction of a road.

”I couldn’t have supported such an operation because that was a road that was supposed to be constructed,” said Waititu.

Waititu further defended his earlier stand that modification of the river’s course was a better solution than demolishing buildings on riparian land.

“We are supposed to build an embankment wall to create a sort of canal that the river can follow but not going to the extent of demolishing and affecting innocent residents,” explained Waititu.

“I strongly believe if canalization can be done, then there would be no need of demolishing.

“If we canalize then the river will follow the canal and property owners should meet the cost of canalizing. This is not something new; If you go to Europe then you can see that it has been done,” he said.