Over 2000 residents of the half century old Woodley Estate within Nairobi have moved to court to restrain the Nairobi county government from demolishing their houses.
In the case filed under a certificate of urgency, it has been disclosed that at least seven residents have died from shock after receiving notices from the County Government of Nairobi to pack and leave “what they have known to be their home since time immemorial.”
Asking the court to intervene and save them from further agony, sickness and deaths, the city home owners through lawyer Danstan Omari have pleaded with the court to invoke its unfettered jurisdiction to prohibit the government from infringing their rights to own property.
The residents, through their Woodley Residents Welfare Society (WRWS), and officials Wanja Kimani, Peter Ngatia, John Mugwe and Samson Mugacha Mwangu, have sued the County Government of Nairobi, the Attorney General and Ministry of Lands Housing and Urban Development as respondents.
Besides, they have named Kenya National Human Rights Commission (KNHRC), Kenya Civil Aviation Authority and National Environmental Management Authority as interested parties.
The petitioners claim that they were never approached by the respondents to give their views about any future development or improvements on the existing residences which housed former freedom fighters like the late Achieng Oneko amongst others.
They claim the notices requiring them to quit have taken them by surprise yet they had entered into agreements with the Nairobi City Council to purchase the houses they have lived in for many years.
They are therefore asking the court to issue temporary orders to restrain the respondents, their agents, servants or any person whomsoever from doing any act interfering with their quiet, peaceful, actual and exclusive possession and enjoyment of the Land known as –Woodley/Joseph Kang’ethe Estate or Land Parcel No.IR No 209/13539.
The petitioners are also seeking orders to prohibit the respondents from dealing in the land on which the Woodley/Joseph Kang’ethe Estate is built.
In the evidence filed by Mr Omari, the petitioners assert that any acts of eviction without any known master plan for the re-development of Woodley is “part of a mysterious illegal scheme which will cost residents unmitigated losses.”
They also contend that any illegal act by the respondents will lead to their inability to sustain their lives and that of their families.
The residents state they received correspondence on June 21 2021 from the immediate former Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS) expressing the intention to commence development beginning with the open grounds before embarking on the occupied areas.
The petitioners have divulged to the high court that the County government is attempting to grab their properties which they bought from the defunct Nairobi City Council.
In the fresh quit notices, the residents say that the projects set to be launched in a month’s time will lead to bringing down homes housing 2000 residents together with their investments inside the estate.
They say this is an attempt by powerful people in the society to evict them and allocate the houses to themselves and their cronies saying no environmental impact assessment that has been done and presented to them.
The petitioners say that they have lived in the estate for more than 50 years, adding that the estate has historical and cultural heritage and diversity that needs to be jealously protected.
“The said members have known Woodley to be their home where they have built shops, hospitals, schools, churches among other social amenities for their use and benefit of other members of the public. The City Council (now Nairobi County Government of Nairobi) resolved to sell houses at Woodley to willing residents,” the petitioners state in evidence lodged in court.
“Corruption has marred this process where outsiders (non-residents) have been allowed to buy the houses in total disregard of the existing tenants.”
The residents state in their present suit that past attempts by the respondents to evict them were thwarted by the court which consequently stopped the sale of Woodley estate.
They state the court has continuously stopped people harassing them with letters as proof of purchase of the properties they have lived in for decades and decades.
“The respondents, without any public participation, intend to suddenly chase the families of the petitioners from the Woodley area and put up the Affordable Housing Project (AHF) otherwise known as urban renewal,” the petitioners state.
“Parties are willing to settle the tussle amicably but the (County Government) is no longer willing to go the same route but instead, intends to permanently, hurriedly and forcefully evict the residents from the said parcel of land in favour of a public project which has been referred to with various names including AHP and Urban renewal.”
The high court has reserved its ruling on the case the residents are urging to be certified as urgent.
