City askaris evict Woodley tenants over Sh3m rent arrears – PHOTOS
City askaris on Wednesday evicted tenants from their houses in Woodley estate over rental arrears amounting to Sh3 million.
The operation is part of a campaign by City Hall to recover rent arrears owed by tenants in housing schemes in Woodley, Buruburu and Kamukunji.
The city askaris confiscated household items of tenants. The items were taken to Dagoretti holding area where owners can reclaim them after clearing their arrears.
TWO YEAR ARREARS
Speaking to Nairobi News, the head of the enforcement taskforce Dr John Ntoiti accused the tenants of defaulting on rent dating back to over two years.
In the morning operation, three families in Woodley were evicted from their houses for not paying arrears amounting to Sh300,000, Sh256,000 and Sh148,000 respectively.
“It’s a shame that these people live for free in City Hall houses for over two years and they do not pay a penny, now we are evicting them,” said Dr Ntoiti.
He said the operation targeted twelve houses in Woodley.
Dr Ntoiti said that rent for high-end houses in John Kangethe and Jamhuri estates range from Sh10,000 on a three bedroom and Sh8,000 on a two bedroom, compared to the market price of between Sh80,000 to Sh100,000 on the same location.
AVOID EMBARRASSMENT
Dr Ntoiti urged residents to pay their arrears to avoid the embarrassment of having their household confiscated by City Hall.
An official not authorized to speak to journalists said the morning operation was temporarily halted because the lorry carrying the households items was filled.
The eviction will resume next week in Buruburu estate and other housing schemes in Eastlands.
