Hundreds of landowners under the Lukenya West Association risk losing their land over a multi-billion debt owed to Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) by the East African Portland Cement Company (EAPCC).
The development comes after KCB in October last year put on sale the land the affected owners bought from EAPCC, aiming to raise Sh5 billion from the sale.
The affected block, located near Green Park Estate in Mavoko sub-county, Machakos County, measures about 1,000 acres.
KCB took over the land from EAPCC after entering into a settlement deed by the firm in 2019 as part of a deal to settle a Sh6.8 billion debt, which the borrower failed to pay.
The loss-making company later transferred about 2,000 acres to KCB to retire the debt, which the lender went ahead to subdivide into smaller plots and put them up for sale to recover its money.
The bank gave priority to members of three land-buying societies representing those who had bought or encroached on the land, formerly under EAPCC ownership.
The bank’s relationship with the societies went smoothly until late last year when it issued a Notice of Sale and Land Regularisation in the daily newspapers.
The one-month notice commenced on November 18, 2024, and was set to lapse on December 17, 2024, with no room for extension.
The notice gave the buyers 30 days to pay Sh200,000 for each plot irrespective of its size as a fee for regularisation and survey purposes.
One of the affected residents, Paul Maingi, in an affidavit before the Mavoko Magistrate Court, said that despite making payments for 24 plots measuring approximately three acres, which payments were accepted and processed, KCB declined payments for plots lying on two blocks with title numbers 8784/654 and 8786/654, totaling 50 acres.
He claimed they were informed informally by KCB’s agents that some of the concerned plots were ‘commercial’ and therefore not available to them.
He said the bank only accepted and successfully processed payments for four plots and not for the other 20 parcels.
“The defendant has illegally and unjustifiably declined and/or refused to accept some payments from me in respect to 20 plots I own stating that they are commercial plots along the tarmacked road near Mombasa Road owned by them and they opt to relocate me to an unknown place,” said Mr Maingi.
He said in the affidavit that despite making several follow-ups on the progress of the declined plots, the lender has remained adamant in processing the plots for registration, standardisation, and survey.
Further, Mr Maingi argued that no public participation has been conducted to zone the area where the bank intends to relocate him.
He said he had even developed 16 out of the 20 plots by building a perimeter wall, two houses, and trees, with other building materials still on site in the said plots, which he claimed he now risks losing without any just compensation.
“The defendant’s role is and/or ought to be limited to recovering their debt and not to act as the vendor for the land,” said Mr Maingi.
“The defendant has since segregated the land near Mombasa Road where my property is located and intends to sell it to other persons without due consideration or consent from me,” he added.
Upon the expiry of the notice, however, the bank began construction of a perimeter wall around the 50 acres and has deployed several police officers to guard the ongoing construction.
The aggrieved parties had on January 8, 2025, obtained court orders, issued by Chief Magistrate Barbara Ojoo, staying the sale of the land pending the inter partes hearing of the application dated December 16, 2024. The hearing has been scheduled for January 22, 2025.
“If the largest commercial bank in Kenya cannot obey orders, where are we headed as a country?” said Mr Maingi.
“If indeed KCB wants to sell the land as a block to a foreign investor, we have no problem. They just need to deal with us transparently. This country should not be pursuing foreign investors at the expense of the rights of Kenyan citizens,” he added.
The group’s lawyer, Mukami Njeru, told the Nation that some unidentified people had warned her against representing the landowners.
“They are dropping names of big people and claiming that the land will be sold to foreign investors,” she said.
In November last year, KCB’s Group Head of Credit Support Oscar Obuna said a team authorised by the lender is committed to working with residents through the entire regularisation process where local squatters will first be allowed to register before the bank begins to validate their documents.
“Registration process is expected to take three weeks and regarding the issue of the amount that the land will be sold, we are clear that up to now we don’t have a price,” said Mr Obuna.
He said first and preferential priority will be offered to parties in the current physical occupation of identifiable portions of the referenced properties.
