As we build roads, let us not forget toilets

Long time ago, remembers a former Cabinet minister, President Jomo Kenyatta was driving from JKIA to State House with his guest, Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie.

On they way to State House, Haile Selassie noticed a man relieving himself by the roadside, and teased the president about that awkward behaviour. Jomo promised to investigate the matter.

Once settled in the State House, Kenyatta announced that the results of his investigations were out. He declared that the man the emperor saw (peeing) was indeed an Ethiopian security officer who was busy ensuring that everything was safe. The two buddies, and those around them, laughed heartily.

Many years later, men can still be seen standing by the roadsides answering the call of nature. While it is hard to tell whether they are Ethiopian security agents at work, it is imperative that this behaviour be dealt with once and for all.

Among people who can help banish this behaviour are Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) boss Mohammed Badi and Infrastructure CS James Macharia.

There two are currently doing a good job improving urban and national infrastructure. Badi has been building beautiful footpaths in the city which have changed the walking experience. Macharia has been building highways after highways that have made travel faster, have lowered transport cost, encouraged more investments and helped create jobs. There is, however, one blind spot to both Badi and Macharia's infrastructure development models.

And its one that development Kabiru Kinyanjui, former Chuka University chancellor, once challenged health and infrastructure policy-makers about. Prof Kabiru had noticed that while within the Nairobi CBD there are clean washroom facilities enable for pay, such facilities are not available along the many kilometres of jogging/walking footpaths that encourage Kenyans to exercise without straining.

He also observed that cultural norms make the going rough for women in the absence such facilities. While it is not unusual to see men “step aside” the footpath to empty their bladder and then resume walking or jogging, this is not the case for women. For women, such a call demands more privacy.

Consequently, Big Badi should consider building rest/washrooms along the new beautiful health footpaths.

But while Badi should worry about men “stepping aside” along NMS footpaths, Macharia should be concerned about vehicles that stop along roads/highways so that drivers and passengers can get some “fresh air” and relief themselves.

Needless to say, the Kenyan toileting problem has colonial roots. In the 1930s, visiting UCLA doctoral student Ralph Bunche (who was nicknamed Kariuki), after noticing that segregated Nairobi had no toilet facilities for “natives”, concluded that Nairobi was a “one big pissory”.

Macharia, the man from Gachocho in Murang’a, can make it a thing of the past by expanding his road construction horizons to provide rest areas for motorists.

The new tarmac road from Isiolo to Moyale, for instance, is long and needs several stop areas, on both sides of the road. The Mombasa highway, with its one big rest place at Mtito Andei, could use more properly provided facilities. Given that the LAPPSET project is still in formative stages, Macharia can ensure that the blueprint has the requisite number of rest areas along the highway that might one day end in Duala, Cameroon. He can ensure that the Kenyan section of LAPPSET is properly done.

Whereas the task of providing toilets along NMS footpaths belongs to Badi and that of providing rest areas along Kenya’s roads and highways is part of Macharia’s docket, other national organs and officials are also duty-bound to pay attention.

In Parliament, Sabina Chege’s interest, as chair of Health committee, besides prodding Badi and Macharia, should nudge Devolution the CS to pressure county officials to provide rest areas on county roads. Rest areas for cut the need for people to stop in odd places because nature demands so. They reduce the “pissory” image, generate wealth and promote Uhuru Kenyatta’s Big Four agenda of ensuring good health, jobs and availability of food.

The Government should do the needful and deny Haile Selassie and Jomo, wherever they are, reason to continue joking about men “standing” by the roadside.

Prof Munene teaches at USIU