New twist in Koinange family property row as goons strike kin's home

Mbiyu Koinange's children George Kihara Koinange and Lena Koinange (second right) with family members Nancy Waigango (left), Angela Wambui (second left) and Susan Kihara (R) at Milimani Law Courts, October 2015. [Courtesy]

In 2005, Chief Justice Martha Koome, then a High Court judge, described the incessant wrangles among the late former Cabinet Minister Mbiyu Koinange’s relatives and their lawyers, "an unending circus."

In yet another twist, the widow of one of Koinange's sons - Solomon Kihara Koinange - has lodged a complaint at Runda Police Station following an attack at her home by goons she claims are linked to the family wrangles.

The attack took place at her home in Closeburn Estate situated opposite Two Rivers Mall in Kiambu County.

According to a police report OB No 25/09/01/2022, Ms Susan Kihara claims that last Sunday over 20 goons descended upon her home and vandalised the gate and doors of her house where her daughter Angela Wambui resides.

The thugs also uprooted a maize crop and destroyed a banana plantation.

“We don’t have any suspect in mind at the moment but we suspect an aggrieved family member is behind the attack,” Susan writes in the police report.

She claims she was alerted by a house-help when the goons struck and upon arrival, she found the home had been vandalised but the attackers did not steal anything.

“If anyone is aggrieved there are clear mechanisms on how the matter should be resolved but by using goons then that person is even after our lives,” Susan said.

She suspects the attack is aimed at scaring her as the family awaits a government surveyor to distribute the prime property next to Two River's mall as directed by Justice Aggrey Muchelule on May 7, 2020.

At the centre of the dispute linked to Closeburn Estate is the distribution of the 246 acres of land. Justice Muchelule directed the administrators to move with speed to measure the acreage of the estate using a government surveyor. He directed that whatever was to be recovered be proportionately shared.

However, two years later the estate is yet to be shared. Susan’s husband Solomon Kihara Koinange died in 1991 and the couple had Angela Wambui as an only child.

“I stand to gain a very prime portion of the estate once the surveyor demarcates the land. I suspect some influential people are behind the attacks and are using some family members to evict us,” she said.

Justice Muchelule ruled that the properties of the powerful Kenyatta-era Cabinet minister will be distributed to his 12 beneficiaries including two widows still alive and 10 children.

At the centre of the 40-year-old court battle was whether the assets should be distributed equally among the four widows or the allocation should be based on a list of Koinange’s spouses as well as his recognised children.

But even after the Supreme Court shared the properties of the late politician, who served in the governments of Jomo Kenyatta and Daniel Moi, there seems to be no end in sight to court battles over his estate.