The Lions Garden in Nakuru City’s Central Business District is once again in the eye of a storm, 40 years after former president Daniel Arap Moi rescued it from grabbers.
This is due to fears the parcel is a target for grabbers following the construction of stalls at the space.
In 1980, President Moi walked into the grounds and ordered provincial administration officials and Kanu Party youth-wingers to remove some building materials that had been deposited at the place by individuals whom he said had illegally grabbed public land.
President Jomo Kenyatta had before his death in 1978 planted a Mugumo tree together with Mama Ngina Kenyatta at the centre of the park.
The two seedlings have since grown into huge trees that stand tall in the park.
The ground has hosted key events that have had profound implications on the country’s political destiny.
Former presidents Daniel Moi, Mwai Kibaki and Uhuru Kenyatta, and the incumbent Head of State William Ruto, along with opposition leader Raila Odinga are among leaders who have addressed numerous roadside meetings next to the park.
This time around, however, the bone of contention is a decision by the County Government of Nakuru to allow construction of business stalls inside the public park.
Although hawkers and other traders have been selling their wares within the park, there are concerns that the decision by the county government to allow individuals put up permanent structures within the premises violates its laws on public park management.
The county government, which is undertaking a massive rehabilitation of the park, has allowed a group of photographers, shoe shiners, and some individuals offering manicure and pedicure services to erect stalls at one end of the park.
The county’s Chief Officer for Environment Ken Mungai said: “It was agreed in many meetings that happened before the rehabilitation works started that we accommodate a few decent, uniform stalls only for shoe-shiners, manicure and pedicure operators, and photographers.”
“The stalls only occupy less than 100 metres on one side, not around the park, and have not been leased out. It is just being facilitated for all park users,” Mungai said.
Mungai further stated that, “Looking at the current face of the park, it looks so indecent with ugly stalls and wall hangings serving as photography backgrounds, taking away the aesthetics of the park."
Nevertheless, another senior county official in the Environment department said that politics had been introduced to the management of the devolved unit which was interfering with the long-term planning of the town.
The official who declined to be named said that the county government had been subverting the full implementation of policies and programmes aimed at raising the green cover within the town’s CBD to combat climate change effects.
“We have top county officials who are only thinking about how to get votes and that is why they are allowing the construction of stalls in the park contrary to our environmental and public park management laws,” the official added.
He said that the construction of the stalls in the park which are built of iron sheets and metal bars will further contribute to the heating of the park which covers a small area, thus undermining efforts to create a cool area with clean air for people to rest.
Environmentalists have voiced their concerns over the county's decision, arguing it undermines Environmental laws.
Jackson Raini of Flamingo Net, a conservation organisation, says Lions Garden is one of the green spaces available in Nakuru City, and putting up stalls for business is a violation of the rights of citizens.
“The garden is meant for recreational purposes. It is an outdoor space designed primarily for leisure, relaxation, and enjoyment. These spaces should have a play area, picnic, and sitting areas. The county must maintain the park purely for recreation,” he said.
The State House arboretum, Menengai arboretum, Lions Garden and roundabouts are part of the improved open spaces within the city.
Environmental activist James Wakibia said green spaces provide city residents with safe and accessible places to relax and socialise.
“Green spaces promote physical activity, mental health, and environmental sustainability for its residents and general well-being,” he says.
Wakibia, an award-winning environment activist, faulted the construction of kiosks around Lion’s Garden, saying putting up the stalls was out of order.
“The Department of the Environment should have instead considered expanding the park for the common good of everyone,” he said, adding that county environmental laws prohibit any businesses in public parks.
As environmentalists lodge their protests, business people have commended the county government for heeding their pleas to erect the stalls, saying this will offer them a conducive working environment.
The chairman of the photographers, Wilson Kariuki, said that only those persons who have been operating within the park had been allowed to construct the stalls.
