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The government has declared an all-out war against rogue developers who put up shoddy structures that end up collapsing, resulting in massive damage to property and loss of lives.

The announcement was made following a spate of buildings collapsing especially in Kiambu and Nairobi counties where housing is in high demand and unscrupulous developers often bypass regulations.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki yesterday said the government will intensify a crackdown on builders and contractors whose houses are found to be faulty saying that the state will deploy proactive measures to avert a possible crisis in the construction sector.

“We will not allow our people to die or to be hurt for the government to move in here and start crying with the citizenry. For this reason, we have declared a war on contractors and builders who are defying government procedures in the construction industry by putting up buildings illegally and in a manner that is posing danger to people and dwellers therein. We will not wait for another house to collapse and therefore, we will enforce the law on the regulation of buildings and construction activities,” said Kindiki.

Learning institution

Speaking in Juja, Kiambu County during the official commissioning of GSU Primary School – Kimbo, a built public learning institution hosting over 600 learners, Kindiki who was accompanied by Education PS Belio Kipsang, Kiambu governor Kimani Wamatangi, Juja MP George Koimburi warned that rogue developers and their accomplices will face arrest and prosecution to address the continuous collapsing of the building leading to deaths.

He blamed the increased collapse of buildings on poor workmanship as a result of the failure of the county government to enforce compliance and deep-rooted corruption among national and county government officers.

Kindiki made the statement days after a crackdown to rein in rogue developers began in Kiambu following the collapse of over five high-rise buildings in less than two years.

Wamatangi revealed that he had commissioned an audit of all residential and commercial buildings across the county, both complete and those under construction, to examine structural integrity.

“This is to address the continuous collapsing of buildings leading to deaths, in what has been attributed to poor workmanship as a result of failure by the county government to enforce compliance and corruption. We truly want investors to come and invest here but we cannot sit and allow our people to die inside faulty buildings. Investors must ensure they obtain the requisite approvals, including occupational certificates,” stated Wamatangi.