Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna has urged that Uhuru Park be reopened, criticising the months-long delay after improvements were completed.
Senator Sifuna wrote to Defence Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale, asking about the underlying difficulties that have delayed the park’s reopening to the public.
The Senator stated that he has received numerous complaints from the public regarding the shutdown.
Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) closed Uhuru Park and Central Park to the public in February 2022 to restore them, with the Nairobi County government committed to reopening the facilities in December of last year.
“Close to four months later the facility remain inaccessible occasioning great inconvenience to the residents of Nairobi and to the thousands of visitors the city receives on a daily basis,” Sifuna said in a statement.
The Nairobi Senator also inquired whether the public facility was handed over to Nairobi County Government following renovations carried out by the former Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) in collaboration with the military.
Works at Uhuru Park were said to be completed in October of last year.
“If not, what underlying issues continue to delay the return of the park to public use and when can Nairobians expect to resume the use of the park?” Sifuna posed.
Some Kenyans were outraged by the closing of the landmark parks for refurbishment, accusing it of being a land-grabbing conspiracy.
Uhuru Park briefly reopened in December 2023 to allow Kenyans who had not travelled upcountry for the festivities to visit the amusement park.
Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja stated that the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) were finalising a few repairs, with the park expected to open in April 2024.