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Sifuna Explains Why He Skipped Eastleigh Building Collapse Site
Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna has defended his decision not to visit the Eastleigh building collapse site or issue a statement, saying he feared his presence could hamper rescue efforts.
Speaking in the Senate on Thursday, November 5, the Linda Mwananchi Movement (LMM) leader said he was guided by advice from the Kenya Red Cross, which cautions leaders against visiting disaster scenes because they can obstruct rescue operations.
“I have always followed instructions from the Kenya Red Cross, and they advised us not to go to the sites because sometimes we actually impede rescue efforts. In Eastleigh, the police had to use tear gas to disperse the crowd,” he said.
According to Sifuna, the National Police Service was forced to disperse crowds that had gathered at the scene, both for their own safety and that of those trapped in the rubble. He said he did not want to add to the burden on responders.
On his silence, the senator said a standard statement of condolence would not tackle the root cause of such tragedies. He argued that building collapses are a by-product of blatant corruption in the public service, and of powerful investors who use friends in top leadership positions to circumvent construction laws.
“As the Nairobi Senator, I have gotten to a point where it is very difficult for me to stand up every time something like this happens to issue a standard statement condoling the families; we must confront the monster, which is impunity,” he stated.
Sifuna revealed that the Senate had earlier summoned Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja over the functionality of the city’s appeals board, after reports that members were not performing their duties because their allowances had gone unpaid. Residents rely on the board to challenge problematic construction in their neighbourhoods.
“We summoned the governor here, and we thought those issues were resolved,” he said.
He also called for audits of the owners of some construction projects whom he described as “untouchable.”
Meanwhile, rescue teams have recovered three more bodies from the collapse site, bringing the confirmed death toll to five.
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