3000 Kenyans on Brink of Eviction Point Fingers at Politicians Amid Legal Battle
More than 3,000 individuals from Kenya face potential displacement from a parcel of land in Msambweni, Kwale County, following a legal victory by a private company after a ten-year court battle.
Based on legal records, the corporation purchased a 57-acre plot from a shoe company and initiated legal proceedings to remove inhabitants who had constructed homes on that land.
Nevertheless, the inhabitants contended that they had been living on the contested property since 1938, prompting them to request the involvement of nearby politicians.
The private company however won the court case.
Inhabitants are currently expressing outrage, alleging that local politicians meddled in the court case, asserting that some of these politicians had a vested interest in the land for a significant period.
Despite multiple efforts to safeguard their residences, the residents have received an eviction notification.
“I have seen the eviction order and this has been decided by the courts. When the order is implemented, it is us the residents, not the politicians who will suffer,” one of the residents stated.
In 2022, the inhabitants submitted a request to the Kwale County Assembly, seeking to persuade the Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) to prevent the forced removals.
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The locals clarified that the land had been leased to the shoe company for a period of 99 years, with the condition that they establish a factory to provide employment opportunities for the community.
Nevertheless, as time went by, the company failed to construct a factory, eventually selling the land to a private company, resulting in the ongoing conflict.
The corporation took legal action to remove the residents, claiming that their presence on the land was causing increased financial losses as the population of over 3,000 individuals continued to occupy the area.
“The applicant (the private company) wishes to execute the decree by demolishing and/or pulling down the structures on the suit property and evicting the illegal occupants. He has deposed that the intended exercise is most likely to be met with hostilities, resistance, and possible violence, and requires the police to provide security,” read part of the court documents.
The individuals impacted are part of the many people who saw their residences demolished in 2023 following court defeats, resulting in the loss of their homes.
In October, individuals in Kenya who had taken up residence on property belonging to the East Africa Portland Cement Company (EAPCC) in Athi River suffered financial setbacks when bulldozers arrived to clear the area, as per a directive from President William Ruto.
3000 Kenyans on Brink of Eviction Point Fingers at Politicians Amid Legal Battle