Demolition of structures raises critical queries

For many, the demolitions are a triumphant assault on corruption. For some like me, the bulldozing exercise leaves behind heaps of rubble and mountains of questions.

The first set of questions is asked in good faith and deep concern. Were the demolitions planned and thought through? According to the Nairobi Central Business District chief who is in charge of the operation, about 4,000 buildings are targeted in the exercise. And it is to take just two months. That is more than the 3,878 schools destroyed in the whole of war-torn Syria in four years. It is more than the 1,474 buildings destroyed during the Crimean annexation. It is 11 per cent of destruction in the devastating five-year Battle of Allepo, and a shocking 57 per cent of destruction in Falluja Iraq.