A rental house in Nyamage village in Kisii has been deserted by occupants due to suspected shoddy construction.
The house, which has for long been home to students from various institutions in the town, is believed to have been constructed on a shallow foundation that may collapse anytime.
According to former occupants of Yokohama rental house, it had started forming unusual cracks, something that precipitated their departure.
“We just realised that the house was forming cracks all over and its foundation is a suspect. We reported to the owner but he has been ignoring our concerns deliberately. This is why we have experienced a mass exodus,” said Kevin Omondi, who has been living in the house.
He said cracks started forming on the walls towards the end of December last year but the owner has not come to renovate it.
“This is almost a month now since we started seeing cracks on the walls. We have been waiting for the owner to rectify the situation but all in vain,” he added.
However, the owner, Wilson Omanga, has denied claims of shoddy construction and blamed students for exaggerating claims besides accusing them of failing to pay rent.
“They are very insensitive when they talk of cracks. We increased rent due to increasing electricity costs from the initial Sh2,200 to the current Sh2,700."