Fresh outrage has erupted in Nairobi after it emerged that Mandera Governor Mohamed Adan Khalif has been linked to a controversial project on land belonging to North Highridge School in Parklands.
On March 5, 2025, court orders were issued halting the consideration and approval of development applications in the Parklands area, specifically covering LR No. 209/8262, the parcel where the school stands.
Despite the ban, a site board has surfaced advertising the construction of Asili Hills Service Apartments, citing the plot number LR No. 209/21526.
Land experts have dismissed the number as fraudulent, noting that 209/21526 is an illegal subdivision carved out of 209/8262 and does not exist in official records at either the Lands Office or Survey of Kenya.
Social media users were the first to flag the project, linking it directly to Governor Khalif as the developer.
The contractor, Eastmann Properties Limited, reportedly had its compliance certificate suspended before the order was controversially lifted earlier this month.
The revelations have triggered public anger, with parents, residents, and civil society groups accusing high-ranking officials of plundering land set aside for education.
“This is impunity at the highest level—a sitting governor grabbing a public school’s land for luxury apartments,” one furious parent said.
The scandal raises uncomfortable questions about oversight within government, especially since the Ministry of Interior and Kenya Wildlife Service are listed as stakeholders in Parklands land allocations.
With the governor now under the spotlight, pressure is mounting on anti-graft and investigative agencies to intervene, enforce the March orders, and ensure that North Highridge School’s land is restored to its rightful public use.
Once again, the hallowed halls of Kenya’s Parliament echo with promises of justice and accountability.
This time, the National Assembly Committee on Lands has summoned Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi over the alleged illegal acquisition of over 1,500 acres of land in Kesses, Uasin Gishu County.
The allegations are serious, involving land that rightfully belongs to squatters, raising questions about the integrity and intentions of our elected officials.
However, if recent history indicates, there is a real risk that these proceedings might merely serve as a spectacle, cleansing and sanitizing corrupt politicians rather than holding them accountable.
The Oscar Sudi Saga
Oscar Sudi’s case is particularly egregious. The MP has been embroiled in controversy before, notably being acquitted of charges related to forging his KCSE certificate.
Despite the court ruling that the prosecution failed to prove its case, the pattern is troubling. Now, with the land-grabbing allegations, there is a palpable sense of déjà vu.
Will Sudi walk away unscathed once again, his reputation laundered by the very system meant to hold him accountable?
The allegations against Sudi involve land in Kesses that should be in the hands of squatters.
The National Assembly Committee on Lands, led by Chairman Joash Nyamoko, has instructed their clerks to summon Sudi after being mentioned by the affected squatters.
They have also halted farming activities on the disputed land. These actions, while commendable, are just the beginning.
Empty Summons and Hollow Proceedings
The process of summoning MPs and officials is supposed to be a cornerstone of our democracy, ensuring that those in power answer for their actions.
However, the case of MP Oscar Sudi is not the first instance where such summons have raised more questions than answers.
Recently, Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi was summoned over a fake fertilizer probe, only to be exonerated by a select committee that found the allegations “unsubstantiated.”
This decision came despite significant public outcry and a detailed dissenting report by four committee members.
If we are to believe that Parliament is serious about tackling corruption, it must start by ensuring that these summons lead to real accountability, not just procedural formalities that allow those in power to escape unscathed.
The Need for Real Accountability
For too long, the political elite in Kenya, especially those aligned with the ruling UDA-Party/Kenya Kwanza administration, have manipulated the system to evade justice.
Parliamentary summonses should not be mere rituals that offer a veneer of accountability while effectively exonerating those who are guilty.
It is imperative that the National Assembly Committee on Lands conduct a thorough, transparent investigation into the land-grabbing allegations against Sudi.
Moreover, this case should serve as a precedent. Committees should be empowered and obligated to pursue justice without fear or favor.
The independence of these committees is paramount to ensuring that they are not influenced by political pressures or allegiances.
Every Kenyan deserves to see their leaders held to the same standards of accountability, regardless of their political affiliation.
A Call to Action
The integrity of our parliamentary processes is at stake. Kenyans are watching closely, and they deserve a government that is committed to justice and transparency.
The Sudi case is a litmus test for Parliament. Will it demonstrate that it is capable of holding powerful individuals accountable, or will it fall into the same patterns of obfuscation and exoneration?
As Kenyans, we must demand more from our elected representatives. We must insist that parliamentary summons are not tools for political theater but instruments of justice.
The National Assembly Committee on Lands has a responsibility to ensure that their investigation into the allegations against Oscar Sudi is thorough, impartial, and transparent.
Conclusion
The summons of Oscar Sudi over the alleged land-grabbing in Kesses is a critical moment for Kenya’s Parliament.
It is an opportunity to show that the legislative body is serious about tackling corruption and holding its members accountable.
However, if this summons is merely a prelude to another exoneration, it will further erode public trust in our institutions.
Parliament must rise to the occasion. The people of Kenya are watching, and they will not accept another whitewash.
Justice must be served, and it must be seen to be served. The future of our democracy depends on it.
Lang’ata Member of Parliament, Phelix Odiwuor, popularly known as Jalang’o, has been accused of an attempted land grabbing incident in Karen.
An organization called The National Assembly of the Baha’is of Kenya reported that their security firm received a distress call from their guards stationed at a property on Muhusi Road, within the Mukoma residences area, on May 15, 2024.
According to the report, the incident occurred at approximately 17:00 hrs when Jalang’o, accompanied by several other individuals, broke the gate of the property. The group then proceeded to tie the hands of the security guards and roughed them up, while Jalang’o allegedly pointed a gun at them, warning them not to be seen on the land again. The intruders then drove off in a black Range Rover, speeding away from the scene.
The security guards, who suffered injuries during the assault, contacted their security firm, which responded to the scene and later reported the matter to Hardy Police Station. The incident was recorded, and a reference number OB#02/16/05/2024 was issued.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Kenya, the owners of the property, has since alerted the Associations of Karen Langata and Mukoma Residence, of which they are members, to be vigilant of such intruders.
Jalang’o, a former comedian and radio presenter, has only recently entered the political arena. His alleged involvement in this land grabbing incident has raised questions about his conduct and integrity as an elected official. The matter is currently under investigation, and it remains to be seen what consequences, if any, Jalang’o will face as a result of these allegations.
Gold Fraud
The latest incident adds to a pile of fraud allegations that have been circulating around against the MP.
Ladt year In September, popular blogger Cyprian Nyakundi had stirred controversy by linking Lang’ata Member of Parliament, Phelix Odiwuor (known as Jalang’o), and two other lawmakers to a KSh 1 billion gold scam in Nairobi. According to Nyakundi’s expose, the saga revolved around a fraudulent gold deal involving a Tunisian national.
Nyakundi alleged that Jalang’o, Nyaribari Chache’s Zaheer Jihanda, and Senator Allan Chesang of Trans Nzoia were part of a syndicate accused of defrauding the Tunisian national in a gold scam.
The allegations suggested that the three politicians were involved in a scheme to sell fake gold and fake dollars to the Tunisian national, leading to a significant financial loss for the victim.
In response to these allegations, Jalang’o, through his lawyers, had threatened legal action against Nyakundi, demanding a public retraction of the defamatory statements, an apology, and compensation for reputation damage and financial losses incurred due to the defamation.
Nyakundi, however, remained defiant, stating that he was ready to face the trio in court and that the claims made in his blog and social media posts are factual. He also hired lawyer Donald Kipkorir to represent him in the case.
The situation sparked a heated debate, with Nyakundi’s supporters arguing that he is exposing corruption among public figures, while critics accuse him of spreading unverified information and engaging in defamation.
Nairobi governor Johnson Sakaja has found himself in the center of a complex land grabbing scandal of a 18-acre piece in Loresho valued over Sh2 billion.
According to reports, the governor finds himself in the circus of the 16-years old land tussle after offering hundreds of millions to buy the contested land from a controversial owner. It was recently featured in the news when the Lands Cabinet Secretary Alice Wahome attempted to intervene but was kicked out by the purported owner and his goons.
Nairobi businessmen Ashok Rupshi Shah and Hitenkumar Raja claim to own the land however former Nairobi provincial administrator Davis Nathan Chelogoi is also claiming the same piece and has been occupying it.
History of the land
As of March, three parties were dangling three different title deeds, all claiming ownership of the same property. The courts have dealt with the authenticity of two of the titles and concluded that the one held by Ashok Rupshi Shah and Hitenkumar Amritlal Raja is genuine. Judges dismissed the one of Jacob Juma, who died in 2016. Juma’s widow and administrator of his estate, Miriam, says she will take the matter to the Appellate Court.
Slain businessman Jacob Juma assassinated in 2016.
She is represented by city lawyer and former Law Society of Kenya President Nelson Havi. Then there is the third and most recent title held by Mr Chelogoi.
Ashok bought grabbed land
Deep in the scandal, court documents seen by Kenya Insights show businessman Ashok had bought the controversial land from other fraudulent businessmen.
Mr. Shah Kirankumar Dharamshi and Mr. Dipti Kiran Shah were charged before the chief’s magistrate court in kibera on 15/10/2008 with the offences of forging a title deed (forgery) contrary to section 350(1) of the penal code, making a false document without authority contrary to section 357 of the penal code and obtaining 33,000,000 from yourself Ashok Shah by falsely pretending they were in a position to sell you the land in question contrary to section 313 of the penal code.
Sakaja
According to reports by a local newspaper, governor Sakaja had entered into a deal with Mr. Chelogoi to buy from him the contested land for Sh900 million. The deal was made on April 18, 2023 and through Sakaja’s company Ayoti Ltd.
At the time Sakaja was making the deal, the property was a subject of a court dispute and as Mr Chelogoi who in the agreement is referred to as the vendor had already filed an application for joinder as an interested party in a case pitting Ashok Shah and Hitenkumar Raja against Juma.
The application made on Aug 3, 2022 raises eyebrows as to why the governor entered into a deal with Chelogoi knowing well the matter was before the court.
The amount agreed (Sh900M) was also half the current market value begging the question why and the speed.
According to the registrar’s records seen by Kenya Insights, Ayoti Ltd was incorporated on January 13, 2020 and has not declared a physical location, according to Business Registration Service records.
The governor is the sole shareholder with 10 shares. He is also the only director.
Ayoti Ltd records.
In March, a Milimani Court directed that Chelogoi be charged for the offence of fraudulent acquisition of a Multi-billion shillings property located at Loresho, Nairobi.
Trial Magistrate Dolphina Alego said Chelogoi has never appeared in court to take plea as directed.
She said the court will visit Chelogoi either in hospital as claimed by his defense lawyer or wherever he will be for the purpose of plea taking.
The Magistrate said the application made by defense counsel professor Tom Ojienda on grounds that his client is unwell and subsequent production of medical documents can no longer be entertained by the court.
Chelogoi has been fighting over the ownership of the land since 2009 but lost the fight when the Environment and Land Court ruled that it was grabbed by late businessman Jacob Juma in 2008.
The court ruled in 2022 that Juma, who died in May 2016, obtained documents to the land fraudulently.
The latest lend scandal adds to the many allegations of corruption that has marred the governor who has only been in office for two years. He has been accused of allegedly siphoning county funds and buying off properties overseas including the U.S. and Dubai.
Questions have been raised as to how he has been able to raise billions enough to buy such properties given his salary that doesn’t come close to buying a sensible fraction of what he owns.
In related matters, others are now questioning the legitimacy of wealth accumulated by public officials who seek to be in a rush to amass wealth, “Cabinet Ministers and Governors earns about Kshs. 2m per month; total Kshs. 120m in Five Years. That is the maximum they’ll earn in FIVE YEARS. But in less than two years in office, Ministers & Governors are buying multi-billion properties locally & abroad. When will EACC arrest them?” Lawyer Donald Kipkorir posed.
Former Presidential candidate Prof Ole Kiyapi termed the accumulation as theft, “Such primitive accumulation of wealth (blatant theft) by public officials is an indictment on the Kenya soul – EACC operates peripherally, unable to dig deep and route our official corruption. Deals orchestrated through scandalous procurements is our bane! Ain’t rocket science!”
Former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko has narrated to the court how he tried to recover Kamkunji Secondary school playground from a private developer.
Testifying before Environment and Land Court Justice Oguttu Mboya, the former Nairobi boss said the land, which belongs to Kamukunji Secondary school was illegally leased to Inter-counties Importers and Exporters ltd.
Sonko told the court that he was approached by the school management when he was Senator of Nairobi County that the play ground had been grabbed by intercounties importers and exporters limited and children did not have space to play.
Sonko told the court that the school was established in 1989 as a community school and allocated two parcels of land, with one parcel set aside for classrooms and the other for playground.
And although the property belongs to the school, he said the defunct Nairobi city council failed to issue the school with an allotment letter, so as to facilitate issuance of a title deed.Documents tabled in court showed that the land was leased to the company in 1997, yet it belonged to the school.
The former city boss said the company started excavations on the land in 2012 and the school sought his assistance in 2014, seeking the revocation of the lease.
The former city governor said he followed up the matter and was informed that the land was a public land held in trust by the council for public use. He said he was informed that the land was not subject to alienation or transfer.
He added that a search with the lands offices revealed that the developer was illegally allocated the land to the detriment of the school.
He said he took action and wrote to the ministry of land, Ethics and Anti-Corruption commission and ministry of education which was under Prof Jacob Kaimenyi seeking revocation of the title held by the private company over the suit property.
“I wrote a letter to the then Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero on 18 July 2013, who promised to pursue the matter and revoke the lease,” he added.
The Governor consequently in 2014 filed a suit in the High Court together with city county seeking the revocation of the title issued to intercounties importers and exporters ltd so that the play ground could revert back to the school and declare the developer as trespasser.
He told the court that he didn’t intervene when he became Nairobi Governor since there was an active case going on in court.
Former Nairobi governor further told the Environment and land court that Nairobi County government promised severally to rectify the anomaly and illegality but to no success which provoked the case to be filed in court.
Sonko added that despite demand to cease the trespass of the suit property and notice of intention to sue in default having been issued to Inter-Countries Importers and exporters ltd, the company refused, neglected and failed to stop trespassing of the suit property.
Former vice president and Wiper party leader Kalonzo Musyoka on Wednesday appeared before the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) in Nairobi where he was grilled over allegations of grabbing 200-acre piece of land in Yatta.
Kalonzo who accompanied by his lawyer James Orengo said he was summoned by the DCI to shed light on how he acquired the land in Yatta, Machakos county. The politician who had also been questioned by DCI land fraud team in January arrived at the DCI Headquarters along Kiambu Rd, Nairobi at 10.30 am said he was on a mission to clear his name after Deputy President Dr. William Ruto accused of grabbing the land belongs to the National Youth Service.
“….just arrived at the Director of Criminal Investigations accompanied by my legal team to honour the summons ……I own the land legally, the claim by the Deputy President is outrageous and I challenge him to substantiate his allegations,” Kalonzo said.
The Wiper leader who is eyeing presidency in the coming 2022 elections was blasted by DP Ruto who accused him of doing nothing to his people other than grabbing the prime plot in his rural home after decades of in government.
But in his defense, Kalonzo trashed DP’s allegations as wild and desperate propaganda, describing himself as a person of “high moral and ethical standards” without stains of corruption.
Kalonzo who worked with Ruto in Moi administration was the first to accuse the country’s second in command of corruption, citing a case where the DP was charged with grabbing land belonging to a businessman in his Rift Valley turf wher he lost the case and was ordered to return the land.
The Wiper leaders who was also accompanied by his political allies including Makueni senator Mutula Kilonzo Jnr and Makueni Mp Dan Maanzo challenged the DP to follow suit and present himself before the DCI for thorough scrutiny.
“I have nothing to hide and I today challenge the authorities to open an investigation into this matter. I am today presenting myself for a thorough investigation by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations as well as the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission.” Kalonzo said.
Kitui county assembly speaker George Ndotto is fighting to retain ownership of a prime piece of land in Kitui town the late former President Daniel Moi donated to him. Ndotto was allocated the land in 1989 when he served in Moi’s cabinet but has not obtained documents to back his ownership of the property that Isaac Kalua is now eyeing.
Ndotto slept on his closeness with Moi as he sat on the grabbed land and forgot to change its ownership. Crooks in the fraudulent land industry who were aware of the status of the land like Kalua had schemed ahead and processed the necessary papers.
The new owner is already sending signals that Ndotto should forget about the prime plot and vacate.
That is after a perimeter wall on the disputed land was recently destroyed by hired goons who left the honorable speaker weeping in public. Detective from the Kitui Central Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) are still probing the chaos with the battle over ownership now heading to the courts and Lands Ministry.
Ndotto was first challenged by a junior staffer at the Checker Oil Products who filed documents to prove the one-acre parcel of land situated along Kitui-Nairobi highway, opposite the Kitui GK Prison was illegally occupied by the county assembly speaker.
Isaac Kalua, he processed ownership documents behind Ndotto [p/courtesy]The former cabinet minister claims that he was gifted the land by the late Moi during one of his tours in Kitui. He claims that the plot was allocated to him on June 22 1989 but records at the land registrar show that the he neither accepted the offer nor paid stamp premium or requisite fees.
“The letter of offer was withdrawn by the Commissioner of Lands for lack of acceptance and failure to pay the requisite legal fees,” a report from the Lands Ministry reads.
The report further revealed that Checker Oil Products through a letter dated January 21 1998 applied for the plot which was lying idle and was issued an allotment letter on June 25 1998.
Checker got an allotment because the status report of the plot at the time showed that Ndotto’s allotment was cancelled on June 22 1998 after he failed to meet the conditions of allotment.
Kalua then used Checker Oil Products Ltd to pay all the prerequisite fees, survey, and a sealed registry index map was signed by the Director of Survey on June 30 2006 and he was issued a certificate of lease on May 23 2018.
Ndotto has been relying on the late president’s verbal instruction that is not supported by records at the Lands Ministry. He lacks the certificate of lease for the land meaning he is not the legal owner of the land but only squatting under the mercies of Kalua.
Controversial Bahati MP Kimani Ngunjiri is embroiled in a fresh land grabbing scandal after he evicted an elderly woman from her property of 45 years by fraudulently manipulating the paperwork to con the granny of the land.
Through her lawyer Eric Mutemi of Nzamba Kitonga Advocates, the 72 year old Pauline Mwangangi is accusing Ngunjiri of using his firm, Pale Kenya Ltd, to transfer the Sh15 million prime land to his name.
The Tangatanga allied politician has also been implicated in a series of other land grabbing cases after he was adversely mentioned in the grabbing of 14 acres from Langata Women’s Prison through dubious means and selling it to a private developer.
The elderly woman is now appealing for intervention to have the Ngunjiri arrested as her lawyer told the court that she has been barred from accessing the plot despite a court ruling on October 30 which granted her access.
A section of the disputed land in Industrial Area [p/courtesy] Ngunjiri challenged the ruling at the Milimani Environment and Land Court in a scheme to permanently kick out the elderly widow, her servants, employees and her agents from accessing the property which she has owned since 1975.
The plaintiff and her husband bought the disputed land from Peter Muigai at Sh79,000 in 1975 before developing it with offices and rental shops but Muigai died in 1980 before he fully transferred the plot to Mrs Mwangangi and her husband.
But troubles began when the administrator’s of Muigai’s estate refused to effect the transfer of the property to the granny who is now at risk of losing her property.
The plot to kick her out of the land began in December 2003 when goons were sent to attack the plaintiff’s husband who later succumbed to the injuries after which Muigai’s administrators embarked on a mission to evict her from the plot.
