Nakuru county government is embroiled in yet another land dispute with a private individual after attempting to take over ownership of land next to county mortuary.

Mr Lawrence Mwangi has threatened to move to court for redress after the county government supervised the demolition of an iron sheet fence around the one and half acre parcel of land at “Gateiguru’.

According to Mr Mwangi, the county askaris were deployed to provide security as the bulldozers flattened the fence.

Read: What does the law say about Nakuru war memorial takeover?

While claiming ownership of the land, Mr Mwangi maintained that the land is private property and that the county had no business invading or bringing down the perimeter fence.

“I was peacefully occupying this land until last week when I started seeing some people unknown to me coming to assess it. I decided to fence it round using the iron sheet but on the following day I saw three land cruisers full of county askaris who came and arrested me,” said Mr Mwangi.

He said he was detained in the cells for about four hours only to be released to find all his fence brought down and the materials stolen.

His attempts to seek the assistance of the police failed to bear fruit as none of the officers appeared willing to help.

A section of the contested land at Gateiguru in Nakuru City.

Photo credit: BRET SANYA/MTAA WANGU

To prove ownership of the land, Mr Mwangi demonstrated the development plan of the parcel of land from the Ministry of Lands which indicated that the land was non committed government land before it was committed to a petrol station.

He successfully applied for an allotment letter in 1996 and was issued with a lease for 99 years.

The resident claimed he has not been able to develop the land because of the numerous suits that have been filed in court by individuals who have interests on the land including the county government.

“This has never been public land and I am wondering why the county administration is keen on taking it by force,” said Mr Mwangi.

According to Mr Mwangi, a private developer had sued him in 2014 after claiming ownership of the same land but the suit was dismissed by the court in 2020.

Also Read: PGH annex and war memorial hospitals differ on land ownership

Again in 2021 the county government moved the matatus to the land claiming it was a decision to decongest Nakuru town in the advent of Covid-19.

However, Mr Mwangi sued the county for damages after accusing it of trespassing a private property. The county in its response claimed ownership of the land. The case is still pending hearing in court.

However, Governor Susan Kihika has on several occasions announced her administration's resolve to reclaim grabbed land, the most recent being her remarks in Kabatini, Bahati during the tree planting exercise.

The demolitions came in the wake of an ongoing legal battle between the county administration and the Nakuru war memorial hospital over the ownership of a 25-acre parcel of land.

Video: What is the Nakuru war memorial takeover and why is it happening now?

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Another land dispute brewing as Nakuru man claims ownership of land at Gateiguru

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