Kirima land heist: A land grab, trail of death and pain

To keep off the opportunists, the family has enlisted the support of former Nairobi governor Mike Sonko and a team of lawyer to untangle the intricate web.

In the end, the Kirima family is likely to engage as many as 1,000 victims of the dubious land deals who are expected to buy back their homes or get demolished.

"We will carry out current market valuation and establish the number of families on the land before we can consider negotiations," said Gathoni.

She added: "It is wrong to politicise lives. Victims are people misled to buy land which was not there. It is immoral for leaders to lie to Kenyans. We have appointed Mike Sonko as our champion because we trust him."

The dream of most city dwellers is to own a place where they call a home where they can stay peacefully without having to bother about rent.

It does not matter whether the house is a palatial one or a mere hovel. Apart from paying rent, there are many advantages of owning a home. Some of them include freedom, privacy, stability and pride of ownership.

No wonder demand for land in Nairobi and surrounding environs is so high that public and private parcels, road reserves, wayleaves, parking spaces and even playgrounds are targeted by grabbers and land speculators. With an ever increasing population, land in the capital city is dwindling at an alarming rate that in the foreseeable future, the vital resource might not be available.

The mad rush for land is the cause of perennial bloody conflicts, grabbing and falsification of ownership documents among other misdeeds associated with land acquisition in a city where owning a home or house is a mark of success.

The sad reality, however, is that most land deals are not genuine. Buyers are duped into believing the property is authentic only to realise later that the parcels or plots are owned by other persons or entities.

And this is the scenario especially in Eastlands where many are left clinging onto worthless title deeds or allotment letters given to them by brokers who hide behind registered self-help groups in the dubious land deals that have left individuals homeless, cashless and led to broken families.

In Eastlands, several self-help groups annex idle parcels in what has come to be known as 'Mradi' - a parlance for gambling.

Potential buyers are never warned about this huge risk. They are instead pampered with nice words, lied to the land is legit and relevant government officials are involved.

This is exactly what happened in Njiru, Choka and parts of Mihango where thousands of home owners are staring at possible eviction after the court ruled recently that the more 1,000 acres they have settled on belong to Kirima. Even though the matter had dragged in court for almost two decades, some of those interviewed by The Standard on Sunday maintain they are innocent buyers, claiming they were not aware of the legal dispute at the time of investing their hard-earned money.

Interestingly, the dwellers have welcomed the ruling delivered by Justice Samson Okong'o, saying they had been suffering in silence accusing those who sold them the parcels of using militia to extort and intimidate them into submission.

Land baron Garishon Kirima. [File, Standard]

Another man who has been threatened for being vocal about the matter said he was attracted to the place after he was made to believe that Kirima was no longer the owner after the veteran politician failed to extend the property's lease. The statistician cum businessman was taken on a tour of the parcel where he was impressed by upcoming buildings.

"Kamatuto officials convinced me that a high ranking official in the ministry of Lands had confined in them that the lease had not been extended prompting the government to surrender the land," recalls the statistician.

When he discovered later that the land indeed belonged to the Kirima family, it was already too late since he had heavily invested on the property - a home and business.

He was among the first land purchasers in 2016. He bought two plots each for Sh300,000. The man came to know about the place when one afternoon he left his Umoja Estate house and went to visit a relative in Njiru.

Motivated by the achievement of his relative who had already settled there, he did not waste time in making a decision.

"This was quite a bargain. I took a loan, buying the first one before going for the second one later," says the businessman with a tinge of regret.

The court set December 31, 2023 as the deadline for the households estimated to be about 25,000 to vacate the land.

"We are now on our own and it is only the government that can rescue us since it has all the database and intelligence on matters land," said Jackson* who blames local police and administrators of failing to protect innocent buyers from land sharks.

Another land owner Ken Onyango says most of them are third party owners settled on a parcel sub-divided and sold out by Unity Selp-Help Group. Their plots cost between Sh400,000 and Sh700,000 depending on year of purchase.

Like their neighbours at Kamatuto, they have been living under the grip of an extortionist gang purporting to enforce order and security.

"Once you pay for the plot; you become a slave of the goons who work close police officers and local administrator. They demand you start building immediately you buy the plot, and worse, you are not in control of who will do for construction works. They come with their own masons and labourers," said George* highlighting tribulations facing many developers in Njiru and Choka.

According to the chairman of High Life Estate Owners, which has 48 courts, the ruling is a godsend since it will finally accord them an opportunity to negotiate directly with the genuine owners of the parcel.

"Members who bought plots live in perpetual fear, and most of them can't open up because the untouchable militia is active and dangerous. In fact as we speak; I have been warned against wading into this matter. Those who sold us land want to lead negotiations with the Kirima family; but we won't allow them," added Onyango.

Newly posted Kayole sub county police commander Lucas Ongaya said he will not allow the goons to continue thriving and harassing dwellers. He disclosed that he has received complaints the goons are threatening some home owners they deem to be an obstacle.

"Although it is a challenge, I will flush them out. I will liaise with the SCIO so that we deploy an undercover team with a brief to intensify patrols inside the affected settlements," pledged Ongaya.