Dagoretti North MP Beatrice Elachi has triggered a heated debate after threatening action against construction sites and employers accused of hiring Burundian workers at lower wages than Kenyans, with her remarks quickly spreading on X and drawing sharp reactions over unemployment, immigration enforcement and the risk of turning labour frustrations into hostility against foreigners.

Elachi accused some employers in Nairobi of preferring Burundian workers because they are said to accept lower pay, especially in the construction and security sectors, claiming that some foreign workers are being paid around KSh 400 a day while Kenyans expect about KSh 700 and above for similar work.

The MP warned that construction sites found employing Burundians would be shut down and said those responsible would have to explain whether there were no Kenyans available to take up the jobs, escalating what began as a constituency labour complaint into a national conversation about joblessness and foreign labour.

Her comments also touched on immigration status and taxation, with Elachi claiming that some Burundian nationals working in Kenya do not have valid documents and do not contribute taxes, although such matters fall within the mandate of immigration, labour and tax authorities rather than political mobilisation at construction sites.

The backlash on X was immediate, with some Kenyans saying Elachi had raised a legitimate concern about employers exploiting cheap labour while many local youths remain unemployed, but others accused her of targeting poor workers instead of going after contractors, labour brokers and government agencies that should enforce permits, wages and tax compliance.

The controversy places Elachi’s remarks in a delicate regional context because Kenya is part of the East African Community, whose Common Market Protocol guarantees free movement of persons among partner states, while still allowing host countries to regulate movement and work under national law on grounds such as public policy, security and health.

Kenya’s immigration framework requires foreign nationals seeking permits and passes to apply through the electronic Foreign Nationals Services portal, meaning the lawful route for complaints about undocumented workers is an enforcement audit by the relevant state agencies rather than blanket threats against workers from one nationality.

The deeper issue may not be the nationality of the workers but the conduct of employers who may be using vulnerable migrants to depress wages, avoid proper contracts and create resentment between equally poor African workers competing for survival in Nairobi’s informal labour market.

There is a dangerous difference between demanding lawful employment practices and telling an entire nationality that they are not wanted, especially in a region where Kenyans also work, trade and seek opportunities across borders.

Elachi’s remarks may resonate with unemployed youths who feel locked out of construction jobs in their own neighbourhoods, but the stronger public interest question is whether government agencies are auditing construction sites, enforcing minimum labour standards, checking work permits and holding employers responsible for any abuse of both Kenyan and foreign workers.

For now, the Dagoretti North MP has succeeded in forcing a conversation about cheap labour and youth unemployment, but she has also opened herself to criticism that her language risks shifting public anger from exploitative employers to foreign workers who may themselves be victims of the same broken labour system.