Resolve Nubian question in slum upgrade

Housing Minister Soita Shitanda was recently quoted saying Kibera land belongs to the Government and, therefore, Government projects must go on.

Can the minister educate us on which part of the Government manages a congested place like Kibera? The land was a military reserve that the colonial authority used to settle Nubians.

However, racism and greed convinced the authorities that Kibera was too valuable to be under the military and in Nubians’ possession.

Thus, the colonial authority transferred the administration of the territory to a civilian group.

With time, the land’s administration reverted to the military. By Independence, Kibera had become a grey area which neither the Nairobi City Council nor ministry of Lands had any influence over.

Since independence, Kibera has witnessed more that ten estates built in an effort to eradicate the slum. These include Karanja, Jamuhuri, Ayani, Fort Jesus, Lang’ata, Otiende and Olympic.

The 1936 Carter Commission Land Review concluded that the colonial government had the moral responsibility to address the Nubian question.

This latest attempt to clean Kibera is not the first. As in the past, every Government has tried to circumvent the Carter Commission’s recommendation by saying Kibera is Government land.

In an attempt to engender public participation, the Government and its project partners conducted pseudo-consultations.

Mobilised tenants

During the mobilisation for the present slum up-grading scheme between 1997 and 2001, it mobilised tenants, demonised and disenfranchised structure owners, resulting in the 2001 ethnic conflict.

Since Shitanda appears determined to provide houses, he should be reminded that an effective project requires the buying in of the beneficiaries.

The Government must consult with all people with any form of claim on the land, including the Nubians. The present structure owners, tenants and even the prospective inhabitants must be considered in designing the project.

Everyone in Kibera desires decent, affordable and dignified shelter. In addition, Nubians want identity. These are issues Shitanda cannot ignore.

There is a popular saying in Kibera: "People die, but only Nubians are buried in Kibera."

Adam Hussein Adam, Nairobi