Jirongo, squatters, CBK in battle over Sh7bn Ruai land

Former Cabinet minister Cyrus Jirongo’s fight to retain ownership of a 1, 000 acre piece of land in Nairobi’s Ruai area has taken a new turn after a group of squatters laid claim to the prime property valued at Sh7 billion.

The land, owned by Mr Jirongo’s Offshore Trading Company, is at the centre of another case between the former Lugari MP and the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK).

The CBK wants to auction the land to recover a Sh20 billion loan M Jirongo took from Postbank Credit Limited (now in liquidation) in 1993.

Court papers indicate that Offshore charged the land as part security to help to Sololo Outlets, another firm owned by Mr Jirongo, to acquire Sh1 billion loan – a debt that has climbed to Sh20 billion as a result of high interest rates that prevailed in the 1990s and that have compounded over the years.

Interest rates on bank loans rose to as high as 30 per cent between 1990 and 1998.

In the new twist, a group of squatters under Ruai Embakasi Youth United Development Organisation (Reyuda) wants the High Court to nullify Mr Jirongo’s title deed and declare it the valid owner of the massive tract of land.

The squatters hold that they have occupied the land since 1993, and that they have since developed it considerably. Mr. Jirongo claims that he was extorted Sh1 million by one of the squatters’ leaders to have the case dropped.

Ruai area has some of Nairobi’s most convoluted land divisions with many cases of double allocations, squatter-dumping by politicians into private properties, and invasion and acquisition of Settlement Fund Trustee (SFT) land by grabbers.

READ: Jirongo stops CBK from selling his Sh7bn Ruai land

It is this mishmash that the High Court will try and unravel. In its court papers, the squatter group claims to have been in continuous and exclusive occupation of the land since 1993 without any interference.

“Since 1993 Reyuda has carried out significant developments on the land in the form of residential houses, a school, a health facility and a police station,” the organisation says.

Under Kenyan law, a citizen can be declared the valid owner of a piece of land if they have occupied it for more than 12 years without any opposition.

The squatters say they have enjoyed occupation of the land for 22 years, and should now be declared its valid owners.

The squatters insist that Mr Jirongo has never legally raised issue with their occupancy of the land, but that he has on occasion used armed goons to scare them off the property.

Mr Jirongo has, however, denied the allegations that he has on occasion hired thugs to evict the squatters, and says that a section of Reyuda officials led by one Frederick Chege Mwangi swindled him of Sh1 million in an attempted out-of- court settlement.

Mr Mwangi, according to an affidavit, was in the presence of lawyer Daniel Bosire from Ongegu & Associates, whom he introduced as Reyuda’s new lawyer taking over from Michael Muchemi, before accepting the cash.

After that, Mr Jirongo says, the squatters refused to leave his property. The politician says he sought the help of police, whom he furnished with a copy of the consented court order in a bid to evict the squatters.

Mr Jirongo, however, says Nairobi senator Mike Mbuvi Sonko stepped in to thwart the eviction, which his firm opted to suspend to avoid violence.

“After waiting for a reasonable period of one week, Offshore moved to enforce the terms of the consent by hiring police to supervise the eviction. Nairobi senator Mike Mbuvi intervened and stopped the police from providing security. The exercise was suspended to avoid violence,” Mr Jirongo says.

Reyuda has, however, distanced itself from the said negotiations, saying it did not part ways with its initial lawyer, Mr Muchemi. The organisation has denied agreeing to withdraw the suit, and insists the squatters should be declared the valid owners of the land.

Mr Bosire, who oversaw the negotiations wants Mr. Chege to be summoned to court so as to resolve the standoff between Mr Jirongo and the squatters.

The lawyer says he signed the consent between Mr Jirongo and Mr Chege on behalf of Reyuda, but denies any wrongdoing as he filed in court the necessary documentation to confirm that he was taking over Reyuda’s representation in the court case.

Mr Bosire adds that he signed the consent that was to see Reyuda pocket Sh1 million and leave the land in dispute, and that the police presence during eviction was part of the terms of the deal reached.

“The entire supporting affidavit sworn by one Frederick Chege Mwangi is full of falsehoods and he should be cross examined. I witnessed him receive the Sh1 million,” said Mr Bosire.

Mr Jirongo claims Kabete parliamentary seat hopeful Ferdinand Waititu threatened Mr Mwangi to disown the deal to evict the squatters. He says Mr Waititu last year offered to help him secure possession of the land.

Postbank Credit Ltd was among the financial institutions that collapsed under the weight of bad debts mainly owed by politically connected individuals.

The CBK’s Deposit Protection Fund Board (DPFB), which is seeking to sell the property, has since joined the suit.

The three parties have entered into talks with the aim of reaching an amicable settlement that will see the two cases regarding the land withdrawn.

The matter will come up before Justice Mary Gitumbi on July 28 to confirm if they have struck a deal.