The Landlords and Tenants Association (LATAK) has launched a helpline to help landlords and tenants across the country in case of an emergency while also urging Kenyans not to pay rent.
In a press conference on Wednesday, April 5, LATAK unveiled the shortcode 20777 which landlords and tenants could text with the word "Landlords" or "Tenants" to seek intervention.
LATAK noted that association representatives would reach you after texting the words to the helpline revealing that it has a rapid response team in a number of police stations around the country.
Justice Freedom Party chair, Justus Juma, who spoke on behalf of the association ordered tenants not to pay rent until normalcy resumes.
"LATAK directs all tenants not to pay rent until when Uhuru Kenyatta orders businesses to resume normal operations.
"All the landlords must forthwith stop evictions, harassment and disconnection of electricity and water to tenants who are not in a position to pay the rent of April and thereafter with immediate effect until the government orders reopening of all the businesses in the country.
"For Kenyans to stay in their houses because this is a collective responsibility for everybody, we all have to play our part. If we play our part correctly we can defeat this thing within three months and we will go back to normalcy."
On Wednesday, April 1, the Landlords and Tenants Association of Kenya (LATAK) called for landlords across the country to offer their tenants rent waivers for the months of April, May and June.
While addressing the nation on Monday, April 6, President Uhuru Kenyatta appealed to landlords to reduce rent for their tenants.
Cases of rogue landlords have been on the rise recently with a number of tenants forced to suffer after failing to pay their rent.
16 families were forced to sleep on the streets in Kayole after their landlord evicted them, due to late payment of rent.
On Wednesday, April 8 Francis Kamau a landlord in Witeithie, Juja resorted to extreme measures of removing all doors for tenants who defaulted on their rent.
