Siblings fight over sharing of father’s 9-acre land

A fight between two siblings over nine-acre land left by their father has landed at the High Court.

The eldest son of the late Nakuru businessman Samuel Kabaiku accuses his sister of pushing to take control of the whole land.

In an application filed on Tuesday before Justice Rachel Ngetich at the High Court, David Karanja is challenging his sister Hannah Njoki’s administrative rights over the land at Ngondu Farm in Njoro sub-county, Nakuru County.

Kabaiku who died on July 31, 1988, aged 76, also owned 11 head of cattle and had an unknown amount of money in KCB and Kenya Post Office bank accounts.

Karanja accuses Njoki of using fraudulent means to take over control of the land.

Njoki was issued with grant letters of administration on March 3, 2015, by the court, replacing their mother Rahab Wanjiku who died on July 7, 2008.

However, to date, Karanja has refused to surrender documents, including the original title deed for the land to Njoki, and wants the court to revoke the grant

Documents filed in court indicate that Njoki, using her administrative powers, has threatened to evict Karanja and four other siblings from the land and sell it.

“The applicant (Njoki) has her agenda to irregularly share out the entire estate at her own whims,” Karanja submits.

Karanja avers that their sister did not inform the family before filing the succession case.

“The applicant (Njoki) has fraudulently caused the rectification of letters of administration without informing the court that there were other beneficiaries,” reads the application.

Karanja documents that since Njoki took over as administrator, confrontations have never ended in their family.

He adds that Njoki has on several occasions misused her powers by inviting armed officers to the estate with intention to intimidate her siblings.

According to the application, all the six siblings had agreed that Karanja, who was the eldest, would take over as administrator of all the suit property after their mother’s demise.

Karanja was responding to Njoki’s application seeking to compel him (Karanja) surrender the original title to her.

Original title

Njoki had submitted that her attempt to divide the land were unsuccessful as she did not possess the original title.

“The applicant cannot divide the land without the title and seeks courts order to compel the respondent (Karanja) to surrender it,” read her application.

In default, she wants the court to authorise Registrar of Lands to issue a new title to her.

Njoki claimed her siblings have ganged up against her and her sister Eunice Wambui, and refused to allow equal sharing of the suit land.

She said the siblings claim they are not entitled to equal share of the property since they are married.

This has seen the two siblings pick up the battle from their mother and their step-mother Naomi Njeri. The two mothers had fought for control of the property from 1991 but settled the matter after signing a consent on November 24, 1997.

Karanja’s application will be heard on February 8, 2021.