Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja, on Tuesday, December 27, denied reports that Uhuru Park was littered after the Christmas Celebrations.
Through a statement, Sakaja clarified that the photos were not captured inside the revamped Uhuru Park but another one adjacent to it.
Sakaja further explained that Uhuru Park was immediately closed after the Nairobi festival which ended on Friday, December 16.
According to the governor, the closure of Uhuru Park after the six-day Nairobi festival event was meant to pave the way for completing the rehabilitation works.
"That is not the refurbished park after the festival. That’s Christmas Day adjacent to the park. The park was closed after the world cup finals/Nairobi festival and remains closed for completion of works," Sakaja affirmed.
The governor was forced to respond after photos of litter in trenches and all over the field were shared online. In addition, he was questioned if the county government had set up garbage collection stations to address the littering menace in the park.
"This image of trash after the festival at Uhuru Park can be viewed in two ways: A bad habit of littering and a lack of services by the County. I wonder how many dustbins are in this newly refurbished park," one social media user wrote.
However, another environmentalist defended Sakaja, maintaining that the litter was not dumped at Uhuru Park.
"Litter left behind by people during the Christmas festivities near Uhuru Park yesterday. Then we start blaming Sakaja. We need to change our behavior as Kenyans," he wrote.
"Just because it's the government's duty to collect garbage doesn't mean people should go dropping garbage carelessly," he added.
Uhuru Park and Central Parks were closed in September 2021 to undergo a significant facelift.
The Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) began the rehabilitation programme to meet international standards.
In the first part of the rehabilitation works, Uhuru Park was fitted with walking paths, skating parks and even restaurants.
