The residents acknowledged receiving a one-month eviction notice from the national government in coordination with the county government. However, they maintain that the court order should have suspended the exercise, arguing that the evictions should not proceed until the matter is determined
Affected residents recounted a heavy police presence as the demolitions began, alleging that officers roughed them up and lobbed teargas to hasten the eviction process.
Before the evictions, the area leaders said that the government had sent some of the residents Ksh4,000 to vacate the area, which they decry as not enough.
In a further twist of events, the community leaders further warned that the leadership of Mombasa, including the Governor Abdulswamad Shariff Nassir, might transfer their political allegiance to other political parties since the broad-based government seems to listen to their demands.
“We want to send a message to the Governor that if he is not listening to our demands, we will mobilise youth across the county and initiate a shift of power because it seems the broad-based government is not listening to our demands,” stated one of the resident leaders.
This comes against the backdrop of Housing Principal Secretary Charles Hinga having disclosed that he is due to be sentenced in a contempt of court case challenging the legality of the Affordable Housing program.
The PS on July 8, revealed that the housing project is defending more than 85 lawsuits, most of which he claims stem from unresolved land disputes, the lack of title deeds, the lack of public participation, and claims over culturally sacred or community land.
This comes as an audit by Auditor-General Nancy Gathungu revealed in April that nearly 70 per cent of ongoing flagship projects lack formal title deeds, with only a fraction of assessed sites holding registered titles, exposing the properties to potential future legal ownership disputes.
