A landlord who waved rent for his tenants at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic is now offering counselling services to those facing depression.
Michael Munene, a businessman and landlord from Nyandarua County, now offers free counselling services to his tenants who sunk into depression owing to the hard economic times resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Munene set aside one of the rooms in his rental houses to set up a counselling centre dedicated to providing the services to his tenants in Ndunyu Njeru Town, Kinangop. In addition, he chose to forgo rent for the room.
"The coronavirus pandemic has deeply effected the economy, it has brought about an economical crisis, and it significantly changed the way people lived," Munene stated.
Speaking to NTV on September 12, two of his tenants narrated how they attempted taking their lives as a result of the pressing economic times. One of them, a male adult, stated that he almost resorted to the hangman's noose.
The other tenant, a mother, recalled how she contemplated putting an end to her misery and that of her young ones.
"I saw the best thing was to light a jiko in the room with my young ones so that we could leave this world in our sleep," she stated.
Thanks to Munene, his tenants and other residents of the town can access counselling services at the Areca Daps Counselling and Guidance offices. In addition, Munene has formed a group that will help some of his tenants to get back on their feet from the little that he has.
Munene first made headlines in 2020 when he waived six months' rent for his tenants who were going through a difficult time. He also donated food items to them.
The acts of the landlord earned him a shout out from NTV presenter Mark Masai, who was doing the news bulletin. Masai described him as a 'big' man, as he had made so many sacrifices for his tenants.
Not many tenants enjoy the same kind of concern by their landlords. In fact, many of them had to vacate from the houses they lived in, both voluntarily and through coercion as they were unable to pay rent.
Recently, a bill was tabled in Parliament by the Public Works and Housing Committee of the National Assembly to give landlords power over tenants. In the proposed bill, landlords would be allowed to vacate tenants who fail to pay house rent for just one month.
