Two developers, including a company and individual property owners, have lost ownership of a 29-year-old parcel of land in Nairobi’s upscale Karen estate.
The EACC has successfully reclaimed the prime land along Mukoma Road, which had been unlawfully acquired by private individuals and is valued at Ksh45 million.
The recovery was facilitated by a ruling from the Environment and Land Court in Nairobi, which ordered the land’s return to the government following a petition challenging its unlawful annexation.
According to court documents, the recovered piece of land known as L.R. 2270/71 measuring 0.029 hectares, was surrendered to the Government of Kenya in 1994 for public utilities and the construction of a public access road.
However, two years later, the property was unlawfully allocated to private individuals who acquired the land in the prime residential estate of Karen.
In a judgment delivered by Justice Lucy Mbugua, the court found that the property is public land and that the purported transfer to private persons was unlawful, and fraudulent hence a nullity.
The court further ordered the cancellation of the title and directed the same be registered in the name of the Nairobi City County Government as a public utility plot.
''A declaration is hereby issued that the Grant, Transfer, and or disposition of public land known as of LR No. 2250/71 measuring about 0.02900 hectares in Nairobi City County issued to the 1st Defendant was illegal, unlawful, unprocedural, fraudulent, and corrupt hence a nullity and void abinitio,'' Justice Mbugua ruled.
''An order is hereby issued canceling the title to parcel LR No. 2250/71 in the name of 1st and 2nd Defendants. The 6th Defendant(Chief Land Registrar) is hereby directed to register the title of parcel LR NO. 2250/71 in the name of the 4th defendant(Nairobi City County Governor) as a public utility plot.''
Further, the court issued orders blocking the defendants and their agents from claiming or interfering with the piece of land after the ruling.
''An order of permanent injunction is hereby issued restraining the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Defendants whether by himself or through his servants, agents, employees, assigns or anybody claiming under them from entering or in any way dealing or interfering with the property known as LR No. 2250/71,'' Justice Mbugua added.
The court directed the first developer to further pay the costs of the suit to the plaintiff after losing access to the property. Following the ruling, the EACC assured the public that it would remain committed to the war against graft. By
