Uhuru kin claims Sh1bn Banda land
Kathleen Kihanya. FILE PHOTO | NMG
What you need to know:
- Kathleen Kihanya, who is President Uhuru Kenyatta’s cousin, claims Banda Homes has misled potential buyers on the land, a claim the investors strongly disputed.
- Banda Homes is developing 120 units of three-bedroomed bungalows on Kenyatta Road, on a 20-acre piece of land about three kilometers from the Thika Superhighway.
- Ms Kihanya warned buyers to conduct due diligence before purchasing the property.
Businesswoman Kathleen Kihanya, a member of the Kenyatta family, has kicked off a storm over ownership of prime land on which a developer is putting up a Sh1 billion estate for sale.
Ms Kihanya, who is President Uhuru Kenyatta’s cousin, on Tuesday claimed Banda Homes had misled potential buyers on the land, a claim the investors strongly disputed.
Banda Homes is developing 120 units of three-bedroomed bungalows on Kenyatta Road, on a 20-acre piece of land about three kilometers from the Thika Superhighway, which it has been advertising.
“This land belongs to my family and we are now in the process of subdivision and issuing separate titles,” Ms Kihanya told the Business Daily in a statement.
“Banda purports to have an agreement to buy part of this land, which is not possible because there is no title. They have erected a sale sign on the land and they are collecting deposits from people. My family had no idea,” she said.
Ms Kihanya warned buyers to conduct due diligence before purchasing the property.
“They are selling land that they don’t have yet. Are they disclosing to the public the true facts? How can they honestly sell something they don’t have?” she posed.
Banda Homes director Paul Nderitu, however, dismissed Ms Kihanya’s claims as “malicious” maintaining that the developer had purchased the land from another Kenyatta kin, Kamau Ngengi.
“We have indeed purchased land about 20 acres hived off from a larger portion that neighbours the Kihanya family land,” said Mr Ndiritu in an interview.
“Ms Kihanya’s claims are just malicious.”
He said the developer will continue with its investment plans as all approvals had been sanctioned.
Banda Homes has been pitching the estate to buyers through an off-plan investment model as a prime area. It has put up for sale three-bedroom units at prices between Sh4 million and Sh5 million.
“Acacia Front Estate consists of 143 units of three-bedroom all en-suite Bungalows. This is a hilly estate quite similar to the Beverly Hills in the US, the all en-suite three-bedroom bungalows are 138 square meters with perfect ambiance, spacious rooms and quality finishes,” the developer says on its website.
Its second estate built on the land is dubbed Oak Park Estate and consists of 77 units of three bedrooms all en-suite bungalows.
