EACC recovers public land worth Sh50m in Machakos

Protested land/EACC

The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has recovered public land in Machakos town valued at approximately Sh50 million, following a landmark judgment by the Environment and Land Court (ELC).

The recovered property, Machakos Municipality Block 1/623, was part of a larger parcel originally set aside for public utility and government housing.

The matter came before the court after the EACC stated that investigations indicated the land, initially part of L.R. No. 909/536, had been subdivided and allocated to private individuals in the 1990s in a manner that the Commission described as irregular.

The parcel forms part of the compound hosting the government “pool house”, currently used by the Sub-County Police Commander.

The Commission highlighted that the land had been reserved for the Ministry of Health for institutional housing and was therefore not intended for private allocation.

In 2019, the EACC filed a suit seeking recovery of the property from Wilson Gacanja, the former Commissioner of Lands, and Joseph Mutuku Muia, son of the late Masaku Town Council Mayor, Peter Ndunda.

The Commission requested declarations that the alienation of the land and any subsequent transfers were invalid, and asked for the land register to be corrected to restore the property to the government.

The case was contested in court. Gacanja told the court that he could not be personally liable for actions taken during his tenure as Commissioner of Lands over 20 years ago.

"That further and without prejudice to the foregoing, the 1st Defendant (Gacanja) avers that in his official capacity as the Commissioner of Lands at the time, he never executed any Lease Certificate or Documents relating to the Parcel of Land, to wit, Land Parcel No. Machakos Municipality Block 1/623 or purporting to transfer the same to the 2nd Defendant," the judgment records.

He also said the process of allocation involved several stages and approvals by the Commissioner’s office and other government officers, and that he acted within the law.

Muia, according to court records, said he was a lawful lessee of the land, having acquired it from his father, who had received a letter of allotment from the Masaku Town Council.

He said he had complied with all acquisition requirements, paid the necessary fees, and obtained a loan of Sh8 million from a financial institution to develop the property. He also sought compensation if the court ruled against him.

The court, however, ruled in favour of the EACC.

Justice Nelly Matheka found that the land had been allocated contrary to its original designation for public use and government housing.

Evidence cited in the judgment, including correspondence, letters of allotment, and testimony from the original allottee, Rameshchandra Nathoo Shah, indicated that the land had been surrendered to the government and that subdivision into blocks had not been authorised.

The court determined that any transfer or charge over the land was null and void.

It therefore ordered cancellation of the title held by Muia, correction of the land register, and restoration of the property to the government.

"A declaration that the land parcel number Machakos Municipality Block 1/623, originally part of LR. No. 909/536, was set aside and/or reserved for public utility for government housing and therefore not available for alienation," the judge ruled.

The judgment also highlighted that public land is held in trust for society and that allocation contrary to this principle contravenes the Constitution.

Costs of the suit were awarded to the EACC.