Poor Kenyans feel devastated by floods and brutalized by the government's response

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Winnie Makinda, 35, says she is facing the worst crisis and lowest moment of her life because of the Kenyan government's response to floods that devastated her poor community in the capital of Nairobi.

The floods and mudslides swept away people and inundated homes, killing at least 267 people and impacting more than 380,000, according to government statistics. The floods are fueled by unusually heavy rainfall during Kenya's rainy season which starts in March and sometimes extends up to June.

Hardest hit are people living close to rivers, including the Mathare River running through Nairobi.

In order to save lives in the future, the government last week ordered evacuations and the demolition of structures and buildings that had been built illegally within 30 meters of river banks. Officials say at least 181,000 people have been moved since last week and that measures have been taken to provide temporary shelter, food and other essentials.

But the demolitions have only led to more suffering as those affected say they are being carried out in a chaotic and inhumane way. At least three people have died in the past week when bulldozers brought down structures on top of them, according to rights groups, family members of the deceased and residents who spoke to The Associated Press.

Among those killed was Makinda's 17-year-old Ian Otieno, who was crushed to death when an excavator brought down a wall of the Pentecostal Evangelistic Fellowship of Africa church while he was inside helping save property.

“The driver of the excavator refused to listen to the pleas by the women that there were children inside the church,” Makinda said amid sobs.

Otieno was the only one of her eight children attending school and he carried the family’s hopes for a better future. A single parent of four sons and four daughters, Makinda faces forceful eviction this week from the $15-a-month tin shack she calls home in Kenya’s populous Mathere slums.

One of her children is suffering from sickle cell anemia that often leaves her bed-ridden and in need of costly treatment and her youngest needs frequent medical attention after being scalded by boiling water around the torso.

Overwhelmed by her situation Makinda tried to jump into the raging waters of the Mathare River to “end the stress." Luckily, her neighbors stopped her on Wednesday and calmed her by giving her a local moonshine called “Changaa” popular in rural and low-income areas of the capital.

Makinda makes $2 day washing other peoples clothes and says she can barely afford one proper meal a day for her children let alone pay hospital bills. And now she has to raise money for her son's burial, a costly exercise for most people in western Kenya, and move to a new house.

“My son's body is lying in the mortuary without preservation because I have not paid. I cannot even afford transportation to the morgue,” she said.

Like hundreds of poor Kenyans whose houses are being demolished, Makinda feels betrayed and abandoned by the government. Some say they were evicted without the legally recommended three-month notice period that should be given before action is taken.

They also say they have not received the $75 in aid to look for alternative accommodation that President William Ruto has pledged.

Millicent Otondo, 48, a mother of three, lost both her home and her 20-year-old business during this week's demolition.

The caretaker of a five-story building that was brought down, Otondo recounted how engineers marked the building housing her shop and home for demolition, which prompted people to break into it and steal her entire stock.

“I am really bitter because police stood by as people looted my belongings,” Otondo said from a local primary school where she has received temporary shelter.

Otondo says she has not received the $75 and even if she did, it wouldn't cover her rent and is a drop in a bucket compared to the $6,000 in losses from her property that was looted. She also wondered why the building was demolished despite having been found not to be in within 30 meters off the river bank.

The government has defended itself against opposition accusations it was ill-prepared for the impact of the floods despite early warnings.

“The magnitude of the weather extremes we are facing, I don't think anyone would be prepared for the weather extremes we are seeing,” Environment Cabinet Secretary Soipan Tuya said in an interview with local broadcaster Citizen TV. “Some parts of this country have never seen floods before.”

Experts say the devastating rains are a result of a mix of factors, including the country’s seasonal weather patterns, human-caused climate change as well as natural weather phenomena.

However, observers point out that the government received early warnings of the floods from the metrological department in October.

“This is hypocrisy, and insensitivity of the highest order,” said rights activist Boniface Mwangi. “The government knew the floods were coming, and even set aside 10 billion ($76 million) to prepare a nationwide response. What happened to those funds?”

He said the government also abdicated its responsibility by allowing the building of houses on land near rivers and swamps.

“Greed is the reason people are dying. Corrupt civil servants approved, and issued title deeds for riparian lands,” he said.

And amid the death and destruction caused by floods, the government is demolishing houses in the name of bringing development through a government affordable housing program, he said.

“Demolishing people’s homes in the name of affordable housing is a sign that we have a tone deaf government. People living in shanties can’t afford to pay for houses costing millions. Their entire life's wages can’t buy any of the houses the government is building,” Mwangi said.

But it is the bulldozing of people's homes during a rainy season that he calls the most inhumane.

“Why would you kick someone out of their home in this season?” Mwangi asked. “Poor people have been violated by the weather, and brutalized by their government.”

Two youths cross a river as excavators and bulldozers bring down their homes in the Mathare area of Nairobi, Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The Kenyan government last week ordered evacuations and the demolition of structures and buildings that had been built illegally within 30 meters of river banks. But the demolitions have only led to more suffering as those affected say they are being carried out in a chaotic and inhumane way. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

Residents watch as excavators and bulldozers bring down their homes in the Mathare area of Nairobi, Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The Kenyan government last week ordered evacuations and the demolition of structures and buildings that had been built illegally within 30 meters of river banks. But the demolitions have only led to more suffering as those affected say they are being carried out in a chaotic and inhumane way. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

Residents watch as excavators and bulldozers bring down homes in the Mathare area of Nairobi, Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The Kenyan government last week ordered evacuations and the demolition of structures and buildings that had been built illegally within 30 meters of river banks. But the demolitions have only led to more suffering as those affected say they are being carried out in a chaotic and inhumane way. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

Residents watch as excavators and bulldozers bring down homes in the Mathare area of Nairobi, Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The Kenyan government ordered the evacuation of people from flood-prone areas, resulting in the demolition of houses and the loss of at least one life in the melee caused by the forced evictions. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

Residents are teargassed by riot police as they try to salvage material in the Mathare area of Nairobi, Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The Kenyan government last week ordered evacuations and the demolition of structures and buildings that had been built illegally within 30 meters of river banks. But the demolitions have only led to more suffering as those affected say they are being carried out in a chaotic and inhumane way. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

Residents scatter as police fire teargas at them, during demolition of houses build on riparian land in the Mathare area of Nairobi, Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The Kenyan government last week ordered evacuations and the demolition of structures and buildings that had been built illegally within 30 meters of river banks. But the demolitions have only led to more suffering as those affected say they are being carried out in a chaotic and inhumane way. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

Millicent Otondo, 48-years-old, stands in front of her demolished shop in Mathare in Nairobi, on Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The Kenyan government ordered the evacuation of people from flood-prone areas, leading to the demolition of houses and the loss of at least one life in the melee caused by the forced evictions. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

An excavator and a bulldozer bring down a building on a riparian land in the Mathare area of Nairobi, Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The Kenyan government ordered the evacuation of people from flood-prone areas, resulting in the demolition of houses and the loss of at least one life in the melee caused by the forced evictions. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

A resident carries belongings as excavators bring down houses in the Mathare area of Nairobi, Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The Kenyan government ordered the evacuation of people from flood-prone areas, resulting in the demolition of houses and the loss of at least one life in the melee caused by the forced evictions. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

Winnie Makinda wails as she narrates how a bulldozer killed her 17-year-old son Ian Otieno, who was trying to salvage material in the Mathare area of Nairobi, Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The Kenyan government last week ordered evacuations and the demolition of structures and buildings that had been built illegally within 30 meters of river banks. Makinda's son was crushed to death when an excavator brought down a wall of the Pentecostal Evangelistic Fellowship of Africa church while he was inside helping save property. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

Residents throw back teargas at riot police as excavators and bulldozers bring down their homes in the Mathare area of Nairobi, Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The Kenyan government ordered the evacuation of people from flood-prone areas, resulting in the demolition of houses and the loss of at least one life in the melee caused by the forced evictions. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

Residents watch as excavators and bulldozers bring down their homes in the Mathare area of Nairobi, Wednesday, May 8, 2024. The Kenyan government ordered the evacuation of people from flood-prone areas, resulting in the demolition of houses and the loss of at least one life in the melee caused by the forced evictions. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

NEW DELHI (AP) — India on Tuesday began counting more than 640 million votes in the world’s largest democratic exercise, which was widely expected to return Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a third term after a decade in power.

The 6-week-long election was seen as a referendum on Modi. If the 73-year-old wins, it will only be the second time an Indian leader has retained power for a third term after Jawaharlal Nehru, the country’s first prime minister.

Exit polls on Saturday by major television channels projected a comfortable win for Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies over a broad opposition alliance led by the Congress party and its main campaign leader, Rahul Gandhi.

Indian television channels have had a mixed record in the past in predicting election results.

Nearly 970 million people, more than 10% of the world’s population, were eligible to vote. Turnout was around 66% on average across the seven phases, according to official data.

The tallying of votes at counting centers in each of the 543 constituencies where polls were held could stretch into the evening before a final result is declared by the Election Commission of India.

But leads will start to emerge earlier, which will give an idea of where the results may be headed.

In his 10 years in power, Modi has transformed India’s political landscape. His popularity has outstripped that of his party’s, and has turned a parliamentary election into one that increasingly resembles a presidential-style campaign. The result is that the BJP relies more and more on Modi’s enduring brand to stay in power, with local politicians receding into the background even in state elections.

“Modi was not just the prime campaigner, but the sole campaigner of this election,” said Yamini Aiyar, a public policy scholar.

His supporters see him as a self-made, strong leader who has improved India’s standing in the world, and credit his pro-business policies with making the economy the world’s fifth-largest.

But a decade of his leadership has also left the country deeply divided. Modi’s critics and opponents say his Hindu-first politics have bred intolerance, hate speech and brazen attacks against the country’s minorities, especially Muslims, who comprise 14% of the population.

India’s economy, one of the fastest-growing, has become more unequal under Modi. While stock markets reach record-highs and millionaires multiply, youth unemployment has soared, with only a small portion of Indians benefitting from the economic boom.

The country’s democracy, Modi’s critics say, is faltering under his government, which has increasingly wielded strong-arm tactics to subdue political opponents, squeeze independent media and quash dissent. The government has rejected such accusations and say democracy is flourishing.

As polls opened in mid-April, a confident BJP initially focused its campaign on “Modi’s guarantees,” highlighting the economic and welfare achievements that his party says have reduced poverty. With him at the helm, “India will become a developed nation by 2047,” Modi repeated in rally after rally.

But the campaign turned increasingly shrill, as Modi ramped up polarizing rhetoric that targeted the Muslim minority, a tactic seen to energize his core Hindu majority voters.

His opposition, the INDIA alliance led by the Congress party, has attacked Modi over his Hindu nationalist politics. It hopes to benefit from the simmering economic discontent, and its campaign has rallied around issues of joblessness, inflation and inequality.

But the broad alliance of over a dozen political parties has been beset by ideological differences and defections, raising questions over their effectiveness. Meanwhile, the alliance has also claimed they’ve been unfairly targeted, pointing to a spree of raids, arrests and corruption investigations against their leaders by federal agencies they say are politically motivated. The government has denied this.

Another victory would cement Modi as one of the country’s most popular and important leaders. It would follow a thumping win in 2019, when the BJP won 303 out of 543 parliamentary seats.

Policemen stand guard outside a counting center in New Delhi, India, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. India's marathon election enters its final phase on Tuesday with the counting of more than 640 million votes in the world’s largest democratic exercise, which was widely expected to return Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a third term after a decade in power. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

Policemen stand guard outside a counting center in New Delhi, India, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. India's marathon election enters its final phase on Tuesday with the counting of more than 640 million votes in the world’s largest democratic exercise, which was widely expected to return Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a third term after a decade in power. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

Police officers stand guard at the entrance of a vote counting centre in Ahmedabad, India, Monday, June 3, 2024. India's marathon election enters its final phase on Tuesday with the counting of more than 640 million votes in the world’s largest democratic exercise, which was widely expected to return Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a third term after a decade in power. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

Election officials leave with sealed electronic voting machines at the end of the polling of the seventh and final phase of national elections in Varanasi, India, Saturday, June 1, 2024. India's marathon election enters its final phase on Tuesday with the counting of more than 640 million votes in the world’s largest democratic exercise, which was widely expected to return Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a third term after a decade in power. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)

A woman watches an exit poll on television at her home in Mumbai, India, Saturday, June 1, 2024. India's marathon election enters its final phase on Tuesday with the counting of more than 640 million votes in the world’s largest democratic exercise, which was widely expected to return Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a third term after a decade in power. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)

Police officers stand guard at a vote counting centre ahead of the counting for Indian parliamentary elections in Mumbai, India, Monday, June 3, 2024. India's marathon election enters its final phase on Tuesday with the counting of more than 640 million votes in the world’s largest democratic exercise, which was widely expected to return Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a third term after a decade in power. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)