The Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA) is appealing to the National Treasury to release funds meant for compensation of residents living along the Western bypass.
The land was acquired by “compulsory acquisition”
Last week, several residents from Kirangari, Gikuni, Kibiku and Gathiga went to KeNHA head office at Barabara plaza and requested that the authority fast tracks their payments.
They said some of them were forced to relocate graves, their houses demolished, and businesses cut off because of the construction.
The Nairobi Western Bypass is estimated to be above 70 percent complete.
It connects the Southern Bypass at Gitaru and the Northern Bypass at Ruaka, thereby completing the fourth and final ring road in the Nairobi Ring Road Network Masterplan which also comprises the Eastern Bypass.
It is an important link and will play a key role in easing the traffic menace around Nairobi.
However, KeNHA said that it needs a total of shs 1.5 billion to compensate all the residents.
Addressing the residents at KeNHA office, the project leader surveyor Engineer Munene said payment to the residents was being done in schedules.
He said the Authority received the first batch of payment last year and forwarded shs 550 million to the NLC which paid some of the residents.
However, the residents said for some of them, they were wondering why their neighbors had been paid and for some – it has taken more than 3 years to be compensated.
But Munene said the NLC is the custodian of land documents and is the one to verify their authenticity.
He said the challenge to pay the residents comes in when some of their documents are not in order.
“For us at KeNHA, we also work with the contractors and identify critical areas and pay the owners so that the contractor does not stop working. However, the next payment will be in a line so that some of you do not feel sidelined,” he said.
He added that Treasury had promised to release funds for the compensation in two months’ time and asked the residents to be patient.
Apart from compensation, the residents also complained that the contractor has cut off some of them and they do not have provisions for exits and entry into
the Western Bypass and their homes.
They also complained of dust.
Some said they must drive extra kilometers to access their homes.
Munene said together with KeNHA technical staff and the contractor, they will visit the area next week and address the residents’ concerns.