The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has reclaimed a prime government property valued at Ksh35 million located next to the Bungoma State Lodge in the Milimani area of Bungoma Town.
The property, which is owned by the State Department for Housing and Urban Development, had been taken by a private developer who demolished a government house and constructed a luxury maisonette on the property, the EACC said.
In a ruling delivered on October 9, Bungoma Environment and Land Court Judge Enock Chereno ruled that the property, registered as Bungoma Township/169 and estimated to be half an acre, was obtained fraudulently.
The court declared all transactions related to the acquisition illegal, null, and void, and ordered the eviction of the current occupant, Judy Nekoye.
Justice Cherono further directed the Bungoma Land Registrar to cancel the fraudulent certificate of lease and remove all irregular entries from the land register, effectively restoring the property to government ownership.
EACC investigations revealed that the disputed parcel was among properties set aside by the government in 1961 to provide residential housing for senior public officers.
However, in 2004, the land was irregularly allocated to Charles Nyasani and Scolastica Nyakerario, who later transferred it to Judy Nekoye in 2016.
Nekoye later petitioned the court to be declared the rightful owner, but the EACC opposed her claim, presenting evidence showing fraudulent dealings in both the allocation and transfer of the property.
The Bungoma Land Registrar was, in accordance with the court’s ruling, directed to correct the records of land, while Nekoye and her agents were ordered to vacate the premises forthwith.
The EACC stated that it is also pursuing another 16 prime public parcels of land in Bungoma suspected to have been acquired irregularly, as part of its heightened fight against land grabbing and recovery of public assets.
The Commission also cautioned Kenyans to conduct due diligence when purchasing land to avert potential losses originating from the acquisition of public property through fraudulent or irregular means.
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