YVONNE'S TAKE: Death by announcements

First, everybody gets a house.

In 2023, 20% of affordable housing units were committed to the disciplined forces, KDF, police, prisons, NYS and other security agencies.

In August 2025, Harambee Stars players and technical staff were promised government support covering half the cost of two-bedroom affordable homes, following earlier requests from the team.

In September 2025, teachers were promised 20% of all affordable housing units, formalised through an MoU between the Affordable Housing Board and teachers' unions.

In October 2025, World Athletics Championship medallists were also promised the same half-price affordable housing arrangement extended to the Harambee Stars.

In 2026, the broader programme was expanded to hundreds of thousands of units, student hostels and modern markets. By June, the President was describing 300,000 houses, 180,000 student hostels and 500 modern markets as part of the programme.

Then there is the Thika Road Expressway that was announced, re-announced and announced again.

On December 12, 2025, President Ruto announced a new expressway from Thika to Museum Hill, modelled on the existing Nairobi Expressway, saying it would be built the following year.

On February 22, 2026, the announcement got a date, with construction set to begin in September 2026, once the JKIA-Westlands expansion was complete.

Later in 2026, during a tour of Kiambu, the President said construction would begin in October.

By October 6 this year, Deputy President Kithure Kindiki said the government was undertaking the design and feasibility study for the 60-kilometre elevated expressway over the existing Thika Superhighway.

December, we will build it.

February, we will start in September.

Later, we will start in October.

October, we are doing the design and feasibility study.

Then we have the Narok Airport edition.

On May 6, 2025, construction of the Narok International Airport at Ewaso Nyiro was launched, with completion expected in 15 months.

On August 25, 2026, President Ruto said the airport would be completed in two months.

Then we have the Bomas International Convention Centre.

On March 11, 2025, Cabinet announced that construction was to begin within two weeks, with the project targeted for completion in 2026.

In November 2025, the President set April 2026 as the completion deadline.

On January 1, 2026, the President said Bomas would be among the major projects completed during 2026.

On February 23, 2026, another target was set, May 2026.

In May 2026, the Senate reported that the expected completion date had moved to September 2026.

By September 2026, the Senate was still seeking the project's contract and procurement documents while construction continued.

As for Talanta Sports City? Well.

Construction began in March 2024.

On April 11, 2025, the President said it would be ready by December 2025 and expressed confidence that the deadline would be beaten.

In January 2026, the government again listed completion of Talanta as one of the major projects to be delivered that year.

By March 2026, the completion deadline had shifted from December 2025 to March, then May and possibly July 2026.

Now, I am not saying that Talanta wasn't built. It very obviously is.

But there is a pattern beginning to emerge here of how the announcement versus deadline cycle works.

Then there are the "something for everyone" announcements.

On August 4, 2026, 106,000 village elders were promised a Ksh.3,000 monthly stipend, SHA cover, smartphones and training.

On October 2, 2025, 500 sportsmen and women were promised recruitment into the disciplined forces.

In 2025, 30 sports academies and 22 additional stadia were announced.

In June 2026, the government announced a Ksh.2 billion compensation programme for verified victims of human rights violations linked to protests between 2017 and 2025.

On October 7, 2026, River Yala victims and other victims of enforced or extrajudicial disappearances were added to the compensation programme.

In June 2026, the government said it was building 300,000 affordable homes, 180,000 student hostels and 500 modern markets.

In February 2026, a new modern arena for Nairobi was announced. By April, a lease agreement had been signed with Zaria Group for an entertainment district.

There is nothing wrong with a government announcing what it intends to do. In fact, citizens should know what their government is planning.

And to be fair, many of these projects are real, many are under construction, and some have already been delivered.

The problem is what happens when the announcements become so numerous, so constant and so politically packaged that accountability itself becomes difficult.

Which promise do we follow up? Which deadline are we measuring? Which project are we asking about?

Where exactly do we begin when the next announcement has already arrived?

Because there is another announcement tomorrow.

And another one the day after that.

More concerning is the way some of these announcements are increasingly made.

Not necessarily from a policy document, a budget statement, a formal government briefing or from the specific line ministry, but from the sunroof of a presidential vehicle, at a rally, in the middle of political theatre, sometimes alongside attacks on political opponents and declarations about the next election.

"Nimewaletea. Nimewapati. Nitawajengea."

Public investment starts to sound like personal benevolence, as though the President has reached into his own pocket and brought a constituency a gift.

Government business, political campaigning and personal credit-taking begin to occupy the same space.

The implicit bargain can start to sound remarkably simple: vote for me again, and I will bring you more.

The political news cycle has now become announcement, excitement, next announcement, next excitement, rather than announcement, implementation, scrutiny, delivery.

Which is why perhaps we need to change what we celebrate.

The announcement should not be the end of the story, or even the achievement itself.

It should be the beginning of the clock.

When will it be done?

How much will it cost?

Who will benefit?

What changed?