The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has recovered a prime plot of land in Mombasa valued at Ksh 21 million, originally set aside for the expansion of Tom Mboya Avenue. The court declared its allocation fraudulent, revoking the title deed and returning it to public ownership. This recovery will support improvements to the city's transport infrastructure.
A 0.13-acre plot in Mombasa City, valued at Ksh 21 million, has been recovered by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission after a court ruling. The land was earmarked for the expansion of Tom Mboya Avenue but was irregularly allocated to individuals through dubious processes dating back to the 1990s.
Justice Stephen Kibunja of the Environment and Land Court cancelled the title deed for the property, declaring it had been acquired unlawfully. Court records indicate the land was first allocated to a businessman via an allotment letter dated January 24, 1996, with no formal application submitted.
In 2002, the Land Registrar issued a Certificate of Lease to a second businessman, granting a 99-year lease at an annual fee of Ksh 6,000. The following year, this second businessman sold the property for Ksh 500,000 to another individual, who then received a lease title in their name. The court found all three transactions to be fraudulent.
The case was initially filed on January 18, 2008, by the now-defunct Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission, predecessor to the EACC, following investigations into the suspected grabbing of the public road reserve. Justice Kibunja also issued a permanent injunction preventing the land grabber from interfering with or dealing in the property except to surrender it to the government.
With the title revoked, the land reverts to public ownership and will serve its original purpose of expanding Tom Mboya Avenue to enhance transport infrastructure in Mombasa, the commission stated. This case follows a similar recovery in October this year, where EACC reclaimed a Ksh 30 million public plot in Nyali, Mombasa, after a 12-year court battle, restoring it for the expansion of Links Road adjoining 1st Avenue.