NAIROBI, Kenya, July 27 -Nairobi Gubernatorial hopeful Pauline Njoroge has waded into the ongoing political row over Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna’s criticism of the Affordable Housing Programme, arguing that the senator’s controversial reference to chickens in Western Kenya was a metaphor for development planning rather than a literal rejection of the government’s housing agenda.
In a statement on Monday, Njoroge accused critics of deliberately misrepresenting Sifuna’s remarks, insisting that his argument was about tailoring development projects to the social, economic and cultural realities of different parts of the country.
“Some people deliberately missed the point H.E Edwin Sifuna was making on affordable housing in Western Kenya. His argument was about chickens in a contextual sense. Those fixated on the chicken missed the context. Those who understood the context understood the message,” she said.
The debate stems from comments made by Sifuna during a radio interview in which he questioned the suitability of high-rise affordable housing units in parts of Western Kenya, arguing that many families own land, build their own homes and depend on small-scale farming, including poultry keeping, for their livelihoods.
He quipped that residents would struggle to live in apartments where their chickens cannot get to the 12th floor, remarks that sparked widespread criticism from the Kenya Kwanza Alliance regime.
President William Ruto later hit back at the senator while defending the Affordable Housing Programme, dismissing the criticism as illogical.
“You are telling us not to build affordable housing because chickens cannot be taken to the 17th floor. How foolish do you think we are? Some people have no sense,” the President said.
However, Njoroge maintained that the President had failed to grasp the broader message behind Sifuna’s analogy, saying effective leadership requires development priorities to reflect the needs of local communities.
“A good leader understands that different parts of Kenya have different social, economic and cultural needs. What works in the centre of Nairobi may not necessarily be the priority in a rural village in Kakamega, Busia, Vihiga, Bungoma or Trans Nzoia,” she said.
She argued that for many households in Western Kenya, access to markets, reliable roads, water, affordable farm inputs, value addition, quality healthcare and employment opportunities rank higher than high-rise housing developments.
“Development cannot be a one size fits all. Leadership is about listening to people and investing in what improves their lives, not imposing the same flagship project everywhere simply because it makes for a convenient political talking point, while the Kenyan worker is squeezed to the last coin to fund it,” Njoroge said.
She accused the President of failing to understand Sifuna’s intended message, likening the chicken reference to a parable.
“The chicken was the parable. The message was about people-centred development. Ruto just doesn’t get it,” she said.
The exchange has added to the growing political contest over the Affordable Housing Programme, one of President Ruto’s flagship initiatives, which the government says is aimed at expanding access to decent housing, creating jobs and transforming informal settlements.
Opposition leaders, however, have increasingly questioned the programme’s suitability in some regions and criticised the mandatory housing levy used to finance it.
