The new town clock at the heart of Siaya was unveiled earlier Thursday and marks the site of the first roundabout in the town, sparking debate on social media platforms.
For about three months, the clock was covered with iron sheets and many people wondered what was being constructed in secrecy.
After the long wait, people expressed mixed reactions after it was unveiled.
A majority mocked the structure, which they photographed and posted to social media.
Mr Joseph Eshiwani wrote: “Siaya CG planners are jokers. They really need to benchmark. Kakamega is not far.”
Steven Charles mocked the roundabout, uploading a photo of it on Facebook and writing: “Maa liend ng'aa momwon e chuny boma Masiaya town kayeni (Whose grave is this in the middle of Siaya town?)”
Mary Atieno uploaded a picture of the roundabout and wrote: “Our town has a new face, at least something good to write about the county of heroes.”
Many boda boda operators stopped next to the roundabout and took pictures, proud that Siaya was becoming a small Nairobi city.
“We are lucky in Siaya. Kisumu is slowly turning into small “Yurop” (Europe) while Siaya town is becoming Nairobi,” said Maxwel Omolo, a boda boda operator.
His colleague John Onyango said: “Raila Odinga has brought everything to us, we don’t have to go to Nairobi to witness traffic jams at the roundabouts, it is right here with us.”
Steven Ouma shared a picture of the roundabout on a WhatsApp group and posed: “After two years of face-lift, how many millions did the project consume? Is it one of the legacy projects?”
In 2021, the World Bank gave the Siaya municipality a Sh25 million grant meant to give the town a facelift.
The areas that were meant to be refurbished were the Ahindi Gardens and Governor's Park. The drainage system in some parts of the town that are prone to floods when it rains was also supposed to be fixed.
“We have a new obligation of training the boda boda operators on how to use the round-about, [a] majority of them have no valid licenses. If not trained we shall have many cases of accidents during rush hours,” wrote Cynthia Atieno on WhatsApp.
