President William Ruto during a rally in Narok President William Ruto has renewed his criticism of opponents of the Affordable Housing Programme, questioning their objections to high-rise housing developments and revisiting remarks about chickens and multi-storey buildings.
Speaking during a rally in Narok on Tuesday, Ruto criticised those he said were being paid, hired or deployed to oppose the government's housing programme.
“Ata kama wewe umelipwa, kukodeshwa, ata kama wewe umepangwa, wewe huwezi kutumia akili kidogo ujue hii housing utapinga namna gani,” Ruto said.
The President then referred to an argument that had previously featured in the political debate over the programme, adding that some critics had claimed they opposed high-rise housing because chickens could not climb stairs to upper floors.
"Then you come and tell us you are opposing housing because a chicken cannot climb stairs in a high-rise building. Use your common sense, my friend. I don’t know if we understand each other," he said.
The remarks mark the latest addition to an ongoing political exchange over one of the Kenya Kwanza administration's flagship programmes.
The debate intensified last month after Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna questioned the suitability of multi-storey affordable housing developments for some communities.
Speaking during an interview with on July 22, Sifuna said some people from the Western region were accustomed to living in homes where they could keep livestock and questioned how chickens would access apartments located on upper floors.
“As people from the Western Region, we cannot live in places where our chicken cannot enter. How will our chicken get to the 12th floor of an affordable housing unit?” Sifuna said.
Earlier, speaking at State House during a meeting with more than 5,000 artisans and mechanics from Nairobi, Ruto dismissed the remarks and defended the government's housing agenda.
“So you are telling us not to build affordable houses because your chicken cannot get to the 12th floor?” the President said at the time.
Sifuna later responded to Ruto through his social media platforms, extending the public exchange between the two leaders.
The President has consistently presented the Affordable Housing Programme as a response to Kenya's housing deficit, while also linking its construction to job creation and economic activity.
The programme involves the development of housing units in various parts of the country, including multi-storey developments in urban areas.
The government has maintained that the housing programme is intended to provide homes at more accessible prices while supporting employment through construction and related industries.
For its critics, however, questions have been raised about the design, affordability and suitability of some developments, as well as the broader implementation of the programme.
Ruto's latest remarks in Narok therefore revive a specific point of contention in the wider debate, as the President continues to defend the housing programme against political criticism.
