Impostors in Nairobi building approvals blamed for collapsed structures

An eight-storey residential building in Kahawa West thay had been condemned for demolition collapses. [File]

Engineers in Nairobi have raised concerns over the rising number of impostors in the approval of buildings and other developments.

For this reason, they argue that it becomes hard to carry out conclusive investigations touching on collapsed buildings.

This emerged during a sitting between the Institution of Engineers of Kenya and Nairobi County Assembly Committee for Planning.

The engineers, while explaining the challenges they encounter when applying for approvals noted that in Nairobi for instance when seeking approval, the county does not ask for geotechnical reports like other counties.

This would guide the developers in determining the condition of soil and rocks in specific areas.

“In Kiambu County, for instance, that is a mandatory, but it is not a requirement in Nairobi; it's important to have it done,” one of the Engineers, John Robert Ogallo, said.

According to the expert, the county ought to have a team of geotechnical engineers, but in their absence, it has created an opportunity impostors.

“Developers would run to them because they are doing it at maybe a third of the price and then they just come and plagiarize other people's work or they do shortcuts,” Ogallo explained

Adding that, “when buildings collapse, they always ask what was the geotechnical report submitted. But now, why are you asking about if it was submitted and not concerned about who is to do it in the first instance?”

During the sitting chaired by Alvin Olando, the engineers urged the county to make an online system used to apply for approvals efficient.

The system, dubbed Nairobi Planning & Development Management System, was established to ease the application and approval of developments in Nairobi County.

However, the Institution of Engineers, led by Shamah Kiteme, told the Committee that engineered delay creates an opportunity for corruption, citing the system’s failure forces them to physically look for the approval.

“While the system is supposed to ensure there is no need for me to come here physically, it's an electronic submission. So when you frustrate the process, you induce the need for physical contact,” he said

He added that, “ How it works, I submit, and you know, every electronic process has what you call digital signature. Then even with that, you follow up and you're told your submission was never received.”

Recently, the institution members have reported cases of delay or missing payment confirmations, unclear workflows and feedback channels, citing that the challenges were meant to inconvenience its members but defeat the very intention of the digitalization of the development approval process.

The Committee asked the engineers to table the names of the county officers suspected to be tampering with the system to force physical meetings.