Residents storm public land allegedly grabbed by two developers

Tulwobmoi residents in Ol-Rongai, Nakuru, protest at a disputed land hosting AIC Church and Primary School on December 15, 2025. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

Residents of Tulwobmoi, located in Rongai, Nakuru County, forcibly reclaimed 16 acres of public land that had reportedly been unlawfully seized by outsiders.

Carrying slashers, machetes, jembes and a power saw, they took down a Kei-apple fence and ploughed the land in an attempt to reclaim it from alleged grabbers.

After ploughing and taking down the fence, they staged a peaceful protest, demanding justice and urging the government to step in and ensure the public land is returned to the community.

Police intervened later to understand, having been informed by one of the alleged grabbers that his land was being ploughed.

However, after discussions with the community, the police said they would advise the developers to take legal action.

“For now, just maintain peace as those claiming ownership of the land take the next step,” said one of the officers as he left the property under community care.

The land hosts AIC Tulwobmoi Church, AIC Tulwobmoi Primary School and AIC Tulwobmoi Secondary School.

Cornelius Kemboi, former chair of the primary school board, said that the land was allocated to them by the late President Daniel Moi in early 2000.

“The president instructed us to construct an AIC church and primary school on the land after donating it to the community,” said Kemboi.

Kemboi said that the plots allocated were three, but due to the kei-apple fence, they concentrated on one part of the land and ignored the other, which was almost half.

However, owing to a recent dispute, the community did due diligence and discovered that the land extended to the part of the idyll that they had ignored.

He added that they discovered that the two individuals, Vincent Cheruiyot and John Tissia, had allegedly used the land as security to obtain a loan of Sh10 million and Sh7 million, respectively.

“We do not know how they got the title deed to own the public land sometime in 2014. We are protesting as parents that we may lose the church and the school, and our children would suffer,” said Kemboi.

According to Kemboi, the primary school hosts over 600 pupils, the secondary hosts over 300 students and the church has over 250 faithfuls.

He called on the two to surrender the land, insisting that the community was well versed with the ownership details and had an allotment letter.

“We will fight for the public land until the end even if it means that we proceed to court,” he stressed.

Luka Tuikong said that they had approached President Moi in a bid to buy the land, but he decided to allocate it to the community.

He said that the president was the one who opened the church once he retired in 2015, which was after the two had taken possession of part of the land.

He said that they did not follow up on the documentation of the land since they assumed it was safe, being public land, but grabbers took advantage.

“We saw a Kei-apple fence and assumed that it was the boundary for the land. We only concentrated on one side, leaving the other side exposed,” said Tuikong.

He said that when they realised part of the land had been hived and sold to the two, they took action and wrote 20 letters to investigative bodies, the Ministry of Education and Land, and the AIC trustees, among others.

He questioned why the developers took loans in Nairobi and Narok, instead of Nakuru, where the land was.

“We blame the cartels who allocated the property to the two. We also blame the banks for not doing due diligence to discover that this land was public and could not be legally used as security for loans,” he stated.

He insisted that the banks never visited the area or contacted residents to ask questions despite giving the loans in 2022 and 2024, when the land had been fully developed.

“We are removing the fence and ploughing on the land, and we will immediately start using it for the benefit of the school and the church. If anyone claims it, we will meet in court,” he said.

Lydia Komen, who has been a resident for over 30 years, said they would use the land to grow food for learners.

She said that learners were at risk of being interfered with in their studies if the government decides not to intervene and reclaim its property.

“They have been studying without interruption, and we want the same to be maintained,” said Komen.

When reached out for comment, Cheruiyot said he would not make any comment over the same. He, however, insisted that he bought the land legally.

We attempted to reach out to Tissia, but he did not answer our phone calls or reply to our messages.