Sauti Sol frontman Bien-Aime Baraza has waded into the debate over Talanta Stadium, saying his objection is not to the 60,000-seat arena itself but to what he called the "inflated price" of building it while Kenyan sportspeople go without basic support.

Speaking on the Obinna Show in an interview aired on Monday, 2 November, the singer said the stadium's cost, which has risen from an initial Sh35 billion to about Sh45.8 billion, reflected "a misplaced priority thing" rather than a bad idea.

"It's not that we don't want Talanta Stadium," Bien said. "The problem is not the asset itself. The problem is the inflated price at which it was made."

'Pay the footballers first'

Bien argued that the money would have been better spent on the people who actually play sport in Kenya. He said footballers should receive their allowances and the domestic league should be made to work before the State builds monuments.

  • He cited the case of skater Kevin Kiarie, who he said regularly wins events but missed an international competition because he lacked financial and institutional backing.
  • He questioned the plan to bring Bayern Munich and Ajax Amsterdam to Nairobi for the stadium's opening in January, asking "how do we keep on misappropriating our funds and spending billions bringing Bayern here?"
  • He described a "disconnect" between what government chooses to fund and what athletes need to compete.

The singer conceded that the stadium, officially the Raila Amolo Odinga International Stadium at Jamhuri Sports Complex, would outlive the current administration. "Once Ruto is out of office, that stadium will be used by Kenyans," he said, adding that it would host concerts and other events, but asked whether that justified its cost.

Government's position

The remarks came days after Sports Principal Secretary Elijah Mwangi insisted that no public money would be used to bring the two European clubs to Kenya for the 5 January 2027 friendly, saying sponsors were covering the match and that the visiting sides would be their main squads rather than legends teams. "We are not using government money," the PS said on Saturday.

The government has previously attributed the cost overrun on the stadium to taxes and other unavoidable charges incurred during construction. The arena is one of the venues Kenya is preparing for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, which it will co-host with Uganda and Tanzania.

The friendly is already the subject of a petition by six Kenyans seeking to block the use of public funds on the event, over a reported Sh724.6 million fee.

Reaction

Bien's comments spread quickly on X and TikTok on Tuesday, with clips of the interview shared alongside both support from fans who said he was voicing what many athletes fear to say, and criticism from government supporters who accused him of talking down a national project. Citizen Digital, Pulse, Mpasho and The Standard's TNX all carried the remarks.

The singer has become an increasingly outspoken voice on public affairs, having been among the artists who spoke out during the 2024 anti-Finance Bill protests.

Photos: Citizen Digital; Pulse Kenya (Talanta Stadium). Thumbnail design: HAMASTA MEDIA.