A group of activists has moved to the High Court to block President William Ruto’s pledge to allocate 20 percent of affordable housing units to teachers and police officers. The petition, filed on Thursday, September 25, argues that the promise is unlawful and lacked proper public participation.
The contested assurance was made on Saturday, September 13, during a Walimu na Rais forum at State House, Nairobi. The meeting brought together over 10,000 teachers drawn from the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), the Kenya Union of Post-Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET), the Kenya Primary School Heads Association (KEPSHA), and other groups.
At the forum, President Ruto announced that an MoU would be signed to guarantee teachers 20 percent of all houses built under the Affordable Housing Programme (AHP). He also pledged similar consideration for police officers, citing their pressing housing challenges in urban areas.
However, legal experts note that such an allocation cannot be enforced without anchoring it in law. The AHP is currently governed by the Housing Act (Cap 117) and the Affordable Housing Levy framework. To reserve units for specific groups, the State Department for Housing would need to draft new regulations or Parliament would have to pass amendments.
An MoU, while politically significant, does not hold the force of law. It may outline criteria for eligibility, financing, and allocation, but must be backed by statutory authority to be binding. For teachers, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) would likely play a central role in determining eligible beneficiaries.
For police officers, the government plans to introduce single-digit interest loans 3% for social housing, 6% for affordable housing, and 9% for market units aimed at easing homeownership.
The petition now puts the spotlight on the legality of President Ruto’s housing promise, raising questions on whether policy announcements made in political forums can bypass established legislative processes.
