8 acres of land in Mombasa that were formerly home to government staff quarters valued at Sh365 million have been reclaimed by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC).
The land is a portion of a larger property in the vicinity of Shanzu Teachers Training College, valued at Sh1.2 billion, that EACC is aiming to recover.
Since then, the commission has secured orders from Mombasa’s Land Court and Environment Department prohibiting Gulf Energy—one of the defendants—from moving forward with the developments it was planning on the land.
Judge Lucas Naikuni of the Environment and Land Court in Mombasa, Kenya, issued EACC orders on November 14, 2023, banning the defendants from using the land for any purpose while the case is being heard and decided.
The topic is scheduled to be discussed on December 7, 2023.
The commission said on Tuesday that “EACC has intensified efforts to recover public property grabbed by individuals in collusion with public officials in Mombasa County.”
This was made clear on Tuesday when Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir, Chief Executive Officer Twalib Mbarak, and other senior government officials visited some of the high-value properties that the Commission had retrieved from the grabbers.
Over 130 civil cases are pending in Mombasa courts at the moment, with the EACC attempting to retrieve and restitute stolen property valued at over Sh10 billion to the public.
One of Kenya’s most prolific counties when it comes to land grabbing is Mombasa County.
Prime land parcels, road reserves, and government homes belonging to various public institutions are among the properties that were taken.
Among the noteworthy cases that are presently pending in court are those involving unlawfully obtained public land that belongs to Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) and was set aside for the Sh2.5 billion expansion of Moi International Airport.
A portion of Moi International Airport’s runway is included in the parcel that was taken.
A noteworthy instance entails unlawfully obtained public property, encompassing government residences for civil servants that are owned by KRA and have a current market value of Sh358.5 million.
Several properties that were previously recovered by the Commission have now been returned to the public.
Among them is the Ministry of Housing’s Hobley Estate in the Buxton neighborhood, which is close to Mombasa’s Affordable Housing Project and has a current market value of Sh500 million.
A legal procedure was used to retrieve the property. Employees of the County Government currently reside there. Subsequent to the court order, the Land Registrar has subsequently revoked the titles that the grabbers had.
Additionally, seven prime properties in the Nyali/Bamburi Estate have been recovered. These properties totaling Sh420 million include one house owned by the Ministry of Housing and six government houses owned by the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA).