- Tragedy occurred after a dam burst in April 29
- Some of the bodies yet to be recovered
Image: George Murage
Victims of the Mai Mahiu dam tragedy in Naivasha could once again be homeless for failure to pay rent, three months after the tragedy that left over 60 dead.
This follows failure by the government to resettle them or pay for their house rent as promised, leaving them at the mercy of landlords in Mai Mahiu town.
It emerged that the planned Sh350 million resettlement plan by the government for the over 100 families had collapsed after the rejection of the Finance Bill 2024.
According to the MCA Eliud Kamau, the majority of the victims had been living in rental houses in Mai Mahiu town after well-wishers agreed to pay rent for three months.
He said the three months had expired, leaving the victims in limbo as the state had gone mute on the planned resettlement.
“The national government has never released any single coin towards the resettlement and now majority of these victims are facing eviction,” he said.
The MCA added that the victims who included small-scale traders, lost all their personal effects and had not recovered. Others were still nursing injuries in their houses.
A victim, Maureen Njeri, said she had been kicked out of her house for failing to pay rent and called on the President to intervene.
“We were told that we would be resettled three months ago but this has never materialised. We continue to suffer every day,” she said.
Similar sentiments were echoed by another victim Julius Mungai, who accused the government of ignoring their plight and failing to keep its promise.
“Many of us were small scale traders and all our goods were swept away. We are now faced with eviction due to failure to pay rent,” he said.
John Kinuthia admitted that failure to enact into law the Finance Bill had affected their resettlement, adding that they were hopeful that the government would keep its promise.
“Many of us were hawkers and we had to start from scratch after the tragedy. We have undergone untold suffering as we wait for the planned resettlement,” he said.
Speaking earlier, Naivasha MP Jayne Kihara said the planned resettlement hung in the balance after the Finance Bill was rejected.
“The government had set aside Sh350 million for the resettlement and this was under the Finance Bill that unfortunately was rejected,” she said.