TPF alumnus Alvan Gatitu evicted over rent arrears, as friends abandon him
Singer and internet sensation Alvan Gatitu spent Saturday night out in the cold after his landlord locked his house over rent arrears.
Gatitu, who is a former Tusker Project Fame contestant, said that he came home to find his house locked, as the landlord demanded to be paid the arrears.
LOCKED OUT
In a video clip that he shared online, he admitted that he had defaulted on rent, water, and electricity bills in recent months due to the effects of Covid-19 pandemic on his job.
“My landlady and landlord waliamua wako na shida zao na mimi nikaenda zangu so mimi nililala nje. Please note that as this was happening nilikuwa nimekatiwa maji na stima for one and a half weeks. Just trying to make ends meet… zimekataa because livelihood ya watu wengi imekuwa affected and business wasn’t working,” Gatitu said.
Gatitu, who has a huge following on Tik Tok for his hilarious broken English comical videos, narrated how he arrived home to find his house and the gate locked and the landlord would not pick his phone calls.
“I don’t know how Covid-19 has affected you, but this is my story and I’m not ashamed of it. My last resort is right here where I found a place to sleep,” he says in the video.
He says that he found his house locked he requested a friend to host him for the night but when he arrived at her place, he was shocked to find out that she had instructed security guards not to let him in.
OUT IN THE COLD
“I thought that this friend of mine could help me, but as soon as I got to her gate, she told the security guards not to let me in. I then explained my situation to the guards who laid out a carton for me in their storeroom and gave me a duvet as well,” a tearful Gatitu says.
He said he again tried to reach to some other friends who unfortunately said they could not accommodate him as they also have problems of their own.
Luckily, Gatitu called the church he attends and they sent him Sh2,000 to find a place to sleep for the night.
“Of the money I got, I had to pay half of it for Boda Boda as it was past curfew.”
Gatitu was eventually accommodated by his security guard who let him spend the night in his small room.
HOMELESS CELEB
He explained that he decided to record and release the video to remove the shame and pretence that comes with celebrity life.
“There is a day that comes when you can’t put two and two together and even your friends will fail you, even the brightest fail at times. This is a message to everyone out there. I’m here to remove the whole celebrity facade by keeping it real,” he says in the video.
“I’m just here to remove the whole celebrity lie. You can trend for months and still have nothing going for you. You can be popular but still struggling and I’m here to remove the same, let’s not pretend,” he says.
His plight caught the attention of Machakos county Governor Dr Alfred Mutua who said he was shocked by Gatitu’s predicament.
“A homeless Kenyan celeb. This is what I was talking about today. We are so addicted to empty politics and personalities who are rich and comfortable. In the meantime majority are suffering,” Governor Mutua tweeted.