Eastleigh building collapse: Engineer denies responsibility, says he only prepared structural designs

Rescue teams at the Eastleigh multi-storey building collapse.(Photo: Zainab Said)

The lawyers said Mugu had prepared structural designs for the proposed building and handed them to the client for uploading and submission for approval. However, he did not receive the approval code linked to the submissions and therefore did not provide further professional services for the project.

The structural engineer of the Eastleigh multi-storey building that collapsed on Friday, October 23, 2026, has disputed claims linking him to the project, saying he prepared structural designs but never received an approval code to proceed with further professional work. In a letter dated October 24, 2026, Joseph Muturi Mugu, through his lawyers, Bedan Njeri and Company Advocates, asked the National Construction Authority (NCA) to provide documents showing how his name and professional details were linked to the development. In the letter addressed to the NCA Director General, the lawyers said their client was responding to a statement issued by the authority on October 23, which identified him as the structural engineer listed in its records for the collapsed building on 9th Street, Eastleigh, Nairobi. The lawyers said Mugu had prepared structural designs for the proposed building and handed them to the client for uploading and submission for approval. However, he did not receive the approval code linked to the submissions and therefore did not provide further professional services for the project. “Consequently, our client unequivocally disputes any attribution of responsibility for the collapse,” reads the letter. The lawyers asked the authority to provide certified copies of the project’s registration application, supporting documents, registration certificate and any subsequent changes to the records. They also requested all structural drawings, calculations, design reports, county approvals and revised submissions held by the authority, as well as documents bearing or appearing to bear Mugu’s signature, stamp, seal or professional registration details. Mugu is also requesting electronic submission and verification records showing who entered his details, uploaded the documents and when the submissions were made. The lawyers also want any available account identifiers, audit trails, verification messages, approval codes and records of confirmation or acceptance attributed to their client. They further asked the NCA to confirm whether it contacted Mugu to verify his appointment or involvement before registering him or naming him in its public statement. “Please also confirm whether the Authority contacted our client to verify his appointment or participation before registering him or publishing the statement and if so, supply the relevant correspondence and verification records,” reads the letter. The lawyers cited Article 35 of the Constitution and sections 4 and 8 of the Access to Information Act, 2016, saying the records are needed to establish the accuracy of information held about their client, protect his professional reputation and enable him to respond to any allegations. The lawyers also asked the authority to place Mugu’s position on the project file and issue a clarification through the same channels used to circulate its earlier statement. They requested an urgent response within 48 hours, citing the continued public circulation of his name. The dispute comes after the NCA identified 9th Street Plaza Limited as the developer and Stromax Holdings E.A Limited as the contractor of the collapsed building. Emmanuel Mwangi Maina was listed as the project architect, while Mugu was named as the structural engineer. The authority said the proposed development was registered on July 30, 2025. However, its statement did not indicate whether the building had been inspected before the collapse, whether violations had been reported or whether enforcement action had been taken. Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja said county records showed that an application to construct the 15-storey building with a basement had not been approved, despite an earlier change-of-use approval granted in 2024. “We’ve looked at the documentation. They had applied in 2024 for a change of use. That was granted. Then an application was made through one John Mutia Musyoke, who is the developer on record. That application was to do 15 plus basements. The application was never granted, meaning there is no approval for this construction,” Sakaja said. The governor said the property belonged to the estate of the late Wilson Mutia Musyoke and that county records identified professionals and a firm associated with the development. He named Precise Civil Engineering Limited as an engineering firm appearing in the project documents. Sakaja said the Urban Planning Committee objected in November 2024 to the proposed shops in the basement and on the ground floor, adding that there had been no subsequent response to the application even as construction continued. “The architect on record needs to answer as to how his client went on to start construction and continue construction without any approval,” he said. He also said an enforcement order had been issued earlier in 2026, questioning whether the penalties for construction violations were strong enough to stop developers from proceeding without approval. “An enforcement order was issued in early this year,” Sakaja said. “Now if somebody is building something like this and they are asked to pay a fine of 5,000 or a small arrest for a weekend and to go back to constructing, what more can then be done?” The governor said the county had forwarded documents to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), calling for investigations into the roles of the property owners, developer, professionals and any public officers who may have failed to enforce construction requirements. He said anyone found responsible, including officers from either level of government, should be held accountable. Two survivors have so far been rescued from the collapsed building and taken to hospital. Police have also launched a manhunt for the building’s owner and contractor as investigations seek to establish the cause of the collapse and possible criminal responsibility.