Questions have emerged over the approval and inspection process of a collapsed building in Nairobi’s middle-income South C estate after the incident left at least one person dead and raised serious concerns about regulatory failures at City Hall.

Despite corruption and dearth of professional have again been cited

Nairobi Members of County Assembly (MCAs) Waithera Chege (South B) and Robert Alai (Kileleshwa) have accused county planning and inspection officers of negligence and irregular approvals, calling for criminal charges against those responsible.

The building, which collapsed at around 5am on Friday on Muhoho Road in Lang’ata district, had reached the 16th floor despite original approvals allowing construction of only 12 storeys.

“I demand that City Hall planning inspection officers, Nairobi urban planning officials, sub-county planning officers and the contractor be charged in a court of law with murder,” Waithera Chege said in a statement posted on her social media platforms.

In April 2025, Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja has come under sharp criticism after the Institute of Engineers of Kenya (IEK) accused his administration of persistent corruption. In a statement, the organisation alleged that its members were frustrated by entrenched corruption, inefficiency and lack of transparency in the development approval process by the county government. IEK accused a section of engineers referred to instances where their development plans were intentionally delayed or rejected unless they paid a bribe to hasten the approval process.

“Such practices erode public trust, jeopardise the safety and integrity of the approval process. Corruption directly affects the pace and quality of urban development, exposing the public to unsafe infrastructure and unjust development outcomes,” IEK lamented.

The institute further noted that despite the establishment of the Nairobi Planning and Development Management System (NPDMS), an online approval platform, many development applications still experienced unnecessary delays.

In the latest incident of collapsed building, corruption has been alleged as the structure had exceeded construction plan by four storeys – from 12 to 16 floors.

Public Service Cabinet Secretary Geoffrey Ruku accused the county government inspection unit of failing to play by the rules. Speaking to the media from the site of the minister said the residents associations had sent 43 letters to the county government citing construction anomalies to no avail.

Alai detailed the approval discrepancies, stating that the structure on LR No. 209/5909/10 (Block 68/1306) was approved under permit PLUPA-BPM-003455-N for 12 floors but had exceeded the limit by four additional storeys.

“This building was illegally allowed to rise to 16 floors. Chief Officer for Urban Planning Patrick Onalo and other officers must explain how this happened,” Alai said, warning that such officials pose a serious threat to public safety when they collude with political offices.

Meanwhile, Lang’ata MP Phelix Odiwuor, known in entertainment industry as Jalang’o, called for an immediate and total suspension of all construction activities in South C and Nairobi West wards.

“This is a tragic and unacceptable way to begin the year. Our greatest concern is the safety of those affected, and we pray that no lives have been lost,” Jalang’o said.

He demanded that the suspension remain in place until all ongoing construction projects undergo full approvals, safety audits and compliance checks by relevant authorities.

“The continued disregard for construction regulations and public safety must come to an end before more lives are put at risk,” he added.

Police confirmed that one person, believed to be a pedestrian, was rescued from the rubble and rushed to hospital. Nairobi police commander George Seda said multi-agency rescue teams were deployed to the scene amid fears that more people could be trapped.

“The building collapsed while under construction. There were no workers on site, but we suspect there may have been security guards on duty who are yet to be accounted for,” Seda said.

A security guard in the area told police he heard a loud bang before seeing a cloud of dust moments before the structure gave way.

The incident has once again highlighted long-standing concerns over weak enforcement of building regulations in Nairobi, where rapid and often unregulated construction has led to several deadly collapses in recent years.

• A Tell Media report / By Tell Correspondent