By Christopher Omondi.
Residents of Nyalenda A ward in Kisumu County are raising concerns over an ablution block that was constructed at the Western Junction but has yet to be opened for public use, despite being completed. The six-door facility was built at the busy road intersection to provide hygienic and functional public restrooms for commuters, traders, and travellers passing through the area. This is one of the few proposed buildings meant to be constructed by the county government of Kisumu in support of trade and agriculture.
The project was funded by the county government of Kisumu through the county revenue fund, with the Chief Officer for Trade, Tourism, Industry, and Marketing bearing overall responsibility for the project according to the service charter. However, locals are alleging that corrupt activities may be one of the reasons behind the delays.
“We call on the supervisors of this project and the county government to open this block for use. What people don’t know is that this project was allocated for the 2023/24 financial year, stalled, and was again allocated for this year as part of the annual development plan for the financial year 2024/25. This means that if we follow the proper channels, this building should already be open for public use. There are many offices and hotels in this area, and this junction leads directly to the Central Business District through Milimani estate, making it a busy location. Initially, many traders and commuters have been using the toilets in the Assembly of God Church, which is just nearby, but now that this ablution block is complete, we should already be using it. However, that is not the case, as we know that corruption has been the root cause of this project. The responsible organs in the county government of Kisumu should come clean to the public about the project,” commented Joshua Aloo regarding the situation.
According to the project’s service charter, the supervisor is the Sub-County Engineer for Kisumu Central, who has not made any statements on this or any other projects under his oversight. Locals are now calling on him and other county officials responsible for the project to take action. “We are now six months since the project was completed. It was part of the 2023/24 budget, and now we are approaching the end of 2025, yet we are still not using the ablution block. It is fair to say that our leaders are failing us. We now call on our Member of County Assembly and Ward Administrators to follow up on this facility,” added Alfred Nandwa.
