Kenya’s EACC seeks return of 400 acres to agriculture research agency

The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission in Kenya is seeking for a return of a 400-acre land allocated to two private developers reverted to Kenya Agricultural Livestock Research Organisation.

The authority filed a suit at the High Court in Nakuru and accused Pineapples Edge Limited (PEL) and Trojan Nominees Limited (TNL) of irregularly allocating the land meant for the National Quarantine Station in Naivasha.

The case is before Justice Mwangi Njoroge of the Environment and Land Court in Nakuru. Last week, the judge barred PEL and TNL from interfering with the property until the application by EACC is heard inter-partes. The case will be heard inter-partes on July 18.

Accusations

The commission, in documents filed in court, is seeking a declaration that the allocation of the land to PEL and TNL was illegal, null and void. EACC wants the chief land registrar to rectify and cancel titles issued to PEL and TNL.

The two companies, it said, should be barred from trespassing onto the property which is public land. EACC had probed allegations of irregular alienation and acquisition of the land since 2015. The agency says it received a complaint from the office of the Director of Public Prosecution, through a letter dated August 5, 2015, relating to the allocation of the research land.

The commission’s South Rift Manager Ignatius Wekesa released a report on July 4, 2022, revealing the land that had been set aside for government use as a veterinary farm in 1904. The property has a large riparian and lake frontage located in Naivasha Township, vandalised staff houses, water tanks, underground systems, and vandalised livestock structures.

“The farm was the hub for indigenous chicken breeding, Lucerne research and a multiplication centre for Sahiwal cattle. Currently, the country has no livestock quarantine facility as a result of the irregular allocation,” claims EACC. A surveyor’s report of 1970 shows the land is expansive and geographically located along Naivasha-Mai Mahiu road, a few kilometres from Naivasha town,” reads EACC’s report.