Landlords have been warned to not ask for rent until further notice.
Tenants can now breathe a sigh of relief after the Landlords and Tenants Association (LATAK) directed tenants not to pay their rents until further notice.
The association’s Secretary-General Ben Liyai says they have talked to their members over the issue, and going forward, they expect no tenants to be harassed by the landlords because of rent payment.
This is until the President orders businesses to go back to normal.
LATAK directs all tenants not to pay rent until when President Uhuru Kenyatta orders businesses to resume normal operations. All the landlords must forthwith stop evictions, harassment, and disconnection of electricity and water to tenants.
The association has also asked landlords having challenges in complying with the directives to send the word ‘Landlord’ to toll-free emergency number 20777 so that the association can pick up the matter.
The association on April 1, 2020, asked its members to waive rent for the next three months to caution Kenyans from the adverse effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
Then on April 5 the association unveiled a short code (20777), which landlords and tenants could text with the word “Landlords” or “Tenants” to seek intervention.
They also asked the government to order a 6-month moratorium on bank loans currently being serviced by landlords.