Housing Principal Secretary (PS) Charles Hinga has revealed that he is battling more than 85 court cases tied to his role in the Affordable Housing Programme, among them a contempt of court matter in which he was due to be sentenced on Wednesday, July 8,
“I have over 85 cases that I am defending. This morning, I was supposed to be in court to be sentenced for contempt. I have over 85 court cases, and the majority of those cases are by a sitting senator,” the PS said as he addressed the Public in Kisumu.
Hinga did not identify the lawmaker but said the bulk of the litigation against him had been instigated by a sitting senator who has consistently opposed the government’s multi-billion-shilling housing project, accusing the legislator of using the courts to frustrate the programme.
He was quick to note that the senator’s grievance was not about the misuse of public funds but about his role in delivering housing for low-income earners.
“A sitting senator has taken me to court not because I have stolen money. He is questioning why I am building houses for the poor, yet as a senator you have a mortgage paid for by the Kenyan people for 20 years,” the PS added.
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According to Hinga, the lawsuits have slowed down efforts to close Kenya’s housing deficit and expand home ownership among ordinary citizens, at a time when the government is pushing to accelerate delivery of housing units under the programme.
He invoked Article 43 of the Constitution, which guarantees every citizen the right to accessible and adequate housing as well as the right to own property, and questioned why the vast majority of Kenyans remain locked out of home ownership despite this constitutional guarantee.
“Are we Kenyans children of a lesser God? The right to own property is one of the rights protected in the Constitution of Kenya. How is it that 97 per cent of Kenyans do not own houses?” he posed.
The PS defended the Affordable Housing Programme, insisting that the units under construction are meant to benefit Kenyans and not foreigners, and dismissed criticism levelled against the initiative as “nonsensical.”
He accused opponents of the programme of advancing selfish interests, describing them as “bankrupt of ideas,” and criticised ordinary Kenyans for listening to opposition leaders, whom he claimed had misled the public over the housing project.
By Frank Mugwe
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