Woman who rejected Uhuru’s house gift, continued living in mud hut

Uhuru’s House Gift: A woman from Bahati Constituency in Nakuru County shocked many when she rejected a house gift from President Uhuru Kenyatta. The single mother termed the gift as a big joke and substandard.

According to a news feature that was published in the Daily Nation on Saturday, the woman had been promised the house after her son Dennis Ngaruiya thrilled the president with a poem four years ago during the Kenya Defence Forces day celebrations at 3KR Barracks in Lanet, Nakuru.  The president had offered to build the house as a gesture of good will to the son.

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“Ms. Damaris Wambui Kamau said the house was not what the President Kenyatta had in mind when he ordered a State House official, a Mr Wanjohi to ensure the family had a decent home. This is a big joke. Look at this house. It has cracks on the outside and looks like a semi-permanent house while President Kenyatta in his wisdom meant well for us as a family,'” the Saturday Nation reported.

The Nation had also reported that State House Spokesperson and Head of Presidential Strategic Communication Unit (PSCU) Kanze Dena insisted that the house was of high standard and wa well equipped.

Ms. Dena was also quoted saying that the lady would be given mattresses and utensils. She was also reported saying that the land on which the house was built was bought next to a land that belongs to a man who works at State House. The land was estimated to have cost some Sh. 650,000.

Apparently, Ms. Kamau had identified another plot in the area in a relatively good location but the plot was rejected by officials from State House. She was also reported saying that the house was previously occupied and was not newly built as the president had promised.

After rejecting the house, the single mother continued living in a rented mud house in Lanet area some four kilometres away from Uhuru’s gift house.

In a show of might, officials from State House and provincial administration handed the house over to another beneficiary. Prior to news about the house hitting media headlines, the state of the house was questionable. The house was surrounded by bushes and tall grasses, had cracks on the wall, and no power connection.