The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has recovered a prime Government plot worth Ksh 30 million public land adjacent to the State House, Mombasa.
In a statement issued on Saturday, December 14, the Authority announced that the then District Officer in Mombasa, in collusion with the then Commissioner of Lands corruptly acquired the land.
“The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has recovered a prime Government plot worth Kes30 million, which had been illegally and corruptly excised from public land adjacent to State House, Mombasa, by then a District Officer in Mombasa, in collusion with the then Commissioner of Lands.
“In a judgement delivered on 11 December 2024, Justice Nelly Matheka of the Mombasa Environment and Land Court nullified all the transactions leading to the grabbing of the land and ordered that the property be reverted to the Government,” the statement read.
EACC retrieves public land adjacent to State House Mombasa
The land in question, Mombasa/Block XXVI/1010, measures 0.0492 hectares and had been originally set aside for government staff, specifically serving as the site for the Deputy Provincial Commissioner’s official residence.
EACC investigations revealed that after the land was illegally acquired, it was sold to a private company, which used the title to secure a loan facility at a local bank. This prompted the anti-graft agency to institute a recovery suit in 2015.
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In her judgment, Justice Matheka upheld EACC’s submissions that the land, having been reserved for public use, was not available for private allocation. She declared all subsequent transactions illegal, null, and void.
Key declarations and orders issued by the court include:
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- Cancellation of the lease obtained by the initial private individual.
- Restoration of the land title to the Government of Kenya.
- Cancellation of the bank charge registered against the property.
- A permanent injunction barring any further dealings, development, or transactions involving the property.
- Cancellation of the transfer of land to the private company.
- Award of general damages amounting to Kes 5 million against the parties involved for wrongful interference with public land.
- EACC was awarded the costs of the suit.
The Anti Corruption body recovers Public land in Kisumu City
The court emphasized that public land reserved for official use cannot be allocated to private individuals or entities under any circumstances.
Elsewhere the EACC recently announced that it has recovered Six (6) parcels of public land in Kisumu City valued at approximately Kes300 million that had been grabbed by private individuals.
Also Read:Â EACC Summons 39 Busia County Officials
The land parcels, recovered through litigation, include 3.2 acres in Kisumu CBD belonging to the Kenya Railways Corporation, 7 acres grabbed from Victoria Primary School, a road reserve near the Governor’s Office and a Government house in Milimani area belonging to the Ministry of Housing.
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