Raila Tears Into Ruto Over Athi River Demolitions

Azimio la Umoja leader, Raila Odinga, accused President William Ruto of being inconsiderate after revoking the title deeds of those who have not developed land at Athi River for over 10 years.

Speaking on Saturday, October 14 during the thanksgiving ceremony of Kitui Senator Enoch Wambua, Raila divulged that he received complaints from among others, Machakos Governor Wavinya Ndeti, regarding the government's move which was implemented without prior consultation.

He argued that the move which saw dozens of homes, schools and churches demolished was ill-timed, given the presence of the El Nino rains when residents need shelter the most.

Raila accused the Head of State of being heartless with his orders which he viewed as inhumane.

“Before I came here, I spoke with Governor Wavinya, and she was in tears about how people were attacked in Mavoko. Their houses were demolished, churches were demolished, schools were demolished, and during this El Niño season, there is heavy rain and people have nowhere to sleep.

"That is an act of brutality, and no one else but Ruto himself gave the order for these people to be evicted. Where do you expect the people who have been living here all this time to go now?” he posed.

The opposition chief demanded that the government put a stop to the demolitions and build new houses for the victims affected.

“We demand that action be taken to ensure these people are provided with their own houses just like the government talks about affordable housing. They should be provided with their own homes, especially during this difficult time,” Raila demanded.

"You cannot unsettle a human being from where they live as if they are animals. That is inhumane and we condemn it to the highest level."

Wiper Party Leader, Kalonzo Musyoka, who was in attendance at the ceremony acknowledged that national exams such as KCPE and KCSE are soon to begin yet some learners in Mavoko have no place to call home due to the demolitions. 

Governor Ndeti during a media address broke down to tears as a sign of voicing her frustration to the national government for rushing the demolition exercise, wondering why there would be the urgency to bring the buildings and installations down when she was still engaging the president on the matter.

"It's shocking that government security agencies proceeded with the demolitions of homes without issuing any notice to the affected people as the law requires," she ranted in a video of her address she shared on X (formerly Twitter).

"It is partially disappointing that the process was unnecessarily rushed despite the fact that there were ongoing high-level discussions between the President and I on the matter."

Effecting Ruto's directive, more than 20 heavy machinery, under the security of armed General Service Unit (GSU) officers, began flattening permanent and temporary structures on the prime land.

Notably, some of the homes were still under construction as the exercise forced residents to seek alternative means of accomodation.

Police officers also condoned off all entries to the land along Mombasa Road to keep off the homeowners, who watched from a distance as their properties were brought down.

After a court found the landowners guilty of trespassing, Ruto ordered the land grabbed from East African Portland Cement (EAPC) to be recovered and its ownership transferred to the Export Processing Zones (EPZ) in Athi River. 

"I have given clear instructions to the management here that all speculators, people who have held titles to pieces of land for 10, 15, 20, 30 years without developing them should be revoked so that we can give it to people who want to use this facility," he said.