Former Buxton Estate tenants accuse Mombasa County of breaking resettlement promise
Mohamed Mzee Rubeya, who previously chaired the Buxton Estate Tenants Association, said the group feels betrayed by the administration’s failure to uphold what he described as a clear agreement.
Former occupants of Mombasa’s old Buxton estate have faulted the county government, alleging that it has reneged on its commitment to relocate them back to the redeveloped housing project.
The disgruntled residents, who say they were displaced during the demolition and redevelopment of the estate, claim the county has gone silent on the resettlement process despite earlier assurances.
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Mohamed Mzee Rubeya, who previously chaired the Buxton Estate Tenants Association, said the group feels betrayed by the administration’s failure to uphold what he described as a clear agreement.
“The Senate resolved this matter publicly, yet what is unfolding now is completely contrary to what we were told,” Rubeya said, adding that families were ejected from homes they had occupied for years.
He accused local leaders of abandoning the affected tenants at their hour of need.
“We have raised these concerns repeatedly, but none of our leaders has bothered to stand with us. We feel completely forgotten,” he added.
Another former resident, John Tsuma, said the displacement had taken an emotional toll on many families.
“Some of our neighbours passed away because of stress after the eviction. People are living in constant uncertainty in the places they are renting now,” he said, adding that, “They fear being thrown out again without warning.”
Tsuma argued that the county administration had not demonstrated commitment to addressing the housing crisis facing low-income families.
Mutua Mutia, also among the evicted residents, dismissed the promise of affordable housing in Mombasa as nothing more than a slogan.
“We are willing to pay through a proper Tenant Purchase Scheme, but there is no genuine effort from the authorities to resolve this matter,” he said.
Norbert Obwoga, who lived in the estate before its demolition, claimed that the redevelopment had effectively shut out the very people who once lived there.
“The whole area has been commercialised. Not a single former tenant has been allocated a unit,” he said.
He added, “This project has not benefited ordinary Mombasa residents in any meaningful way.”
Obwoga added that those displaced remain ready to take up units under the Tenant Purchase Scheme if the county honours its earlier pledges.
“All we are asking for is fairness. We are ready to pay, but the TPS must be implemented,” he said.
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