Over 20 families face eviction from Subukia land

The Environment and Land Court has ordered the eviction of more than 20 families from a 45-acre parcel within the Subukia Settlement Scheme, which they have occupied for over 25 years. Justice Anthony Ombwayo ruled that the families failed to prove they purchased the land from a third party, Waithera Mwangi, in 1994. He noted that Waithera had no legal authority to sell the land, having not lawfully acquired it from the original allottee, the late Alfred Munga. The judge held that Munga's daughters, Anna Wanjiku and Doris Wanjiru, had lawfully inherited the property, producing valid letters of administration and a title deed issued in 2011. He added that Munga had fulfilled the Sh10,000 bond required by the allotment letter. Consequently, Justice Ombwayo ordered the families to vacate the land within 60 days, or else, the OCS Nakuru Police Station would be required to ensure compliance with the orders. "The defendants are directed to pay Sh200,000, the general damages for trespass on the land. They will also shoulder the cost of the land case," ruled Justice Ombwayo. He further ruled that the families failed to establish that the sisters and their father fraudulently acquired the property. The Judge pointed out that the families and the third party's evidence and testimonies contained irregularities and inconsistencies which were left unanswered. Despite the families claiming that they purchased 25 acres out of the 45 from Waithera between 1994 and 1995, Justice Obwayo ruled that there was no written sale agreement. He noted that despite the claim that the land was transferred from Nyarigi Motor Spares on October 21, 1983, the company was only registered on June 19, 1984. "The question therefore begs; how can a transfer of the parcel take place before the business was even registered? It is my view that the same raises question marks which were never explained," ruled Justice Ombwayo. Further, he found that Waithera never contested the claim that she only paid Sh70,000 out of the Sh280,000 agreed with Munga, making the transaction unsuccessful. Notably, the judge said that the complaint allegedly raised by the families to investigation agencies did not yield any outcome since there was no report done on the same. Further, he faulted Waithera's inconsistent testimony, where she said that her grant was confirmed on November 9, 2000 but she sold the land between 1994 and 1995. "It is this court's view that the same does not seem to add up since if this court is to go by the said evidence, it meant that the third party never owned the parcel to sell to the defendants," he ruled. "It is therefore my opinion that the third party clearly lacked the capacity to sell the land to the defendants," Justice Ombwayo ruled. The judge affirmed that it was not in dispute that Munga (deceased) was the original allottee of the parcel. "The plaintiffs (sisters) produced letters of administration issued to them on July 26, 2011, confirming they were the lawful administrators of the estate. They also produced a title deed in their name issued on September 9, 2011," he ruled. The judge also noted that Munga paid Sh10,000 bond in terms of the allotment letter, meeting the terms of the allotment letter.

Over 20 families face eviction from Subukia land

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Over 20 families face eviction from Subukia land

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