The land battles former President Daniel arap Moi was fighting at the time of his death last year have come back to haunt his kin.
Moi forcibly took over a 53-acre piece of land owned by ex-chief Noah Kipngeny Chelugui through a scheme that involved ordering lands officials to make the necessary transfers to register the property and he later sold it to a firm owned by the Jaswant Rai family.
Rai and Moi families have been ordered to compensate a widow over Sh2 billion for a 53-acre land grabbed in 1983.
This is after Court of Appeal dismissed two appeals against a 2019 judgment that ordered for the compensation package to Susan Chelugui, the 88-year-old widow of former chief Noah Chelugui and her son David.
“With guidance from the above provision on the manner in which the constitution should be construed, we think that Article 40 of the constitution is one of those constitutional provisions that is not limited in its application. It can, and must in appropriate cases, apply retrospectively. It seems quite clear to us that the right to property is ring-fenced by the constitution and courts must be vigilant to ensure that the State and those who wield State power do not by might negate the right,” the Court of Appeal judges ruled.
The courts opted to order for monetary compensation equivalent to the value of the 53 acres rather than evict Rai Plywood (K) Limited.
The family of the late Chelugui wanted Sh2 billion set aside for an award the Eldoret High Court gave.
The High Court had subsequently found the former President’s move as illegal and ordered both him and Rai Plywood Limited to pay Chelugui’s family, the current market value of the prime property.
Chelugui’s wife Susan and son David sued Moi, Rai Plywood, the District Land Registrar, Uasin Gishu District, the Registrar of Titles and the National Land Commission in 2014.
The District Lands Registrar and Uasin Gishu District on the hand dismissed the claims arguing that they were “bound by orders from above.
“On the contrary to the defendants claimed that the suit was a claim for land veiled as a constitutional petition. Had the case been treated purely as a land case, it would have been time-barred because Kenya’s laws provide a 12-year window to sue for such a claim,” they stated
Through Zehrabanu Janmohammed, Moi appealed against High Court judge Antony Ombwayo’s 2019 order that Chelugui and her son be paid Sh1.06 billion, which was the value of the property.
Moi reportedly sold to three different entities between 1988 and 2016.
Moi, who died in February 2020, is alleged to have sold the land located in Muthaiga to DPS International Limited in 1988 and thereafter to Muthaiga Luxury Homes Ltd in 2012.
The former president is said to have sold the same property again in 2016 to Maestro Connections Health Systems Ltd.
In 2021, Chelugui sought to join the Moi succession case together with a US-based businessman, George Kiongera who argued that Sh2.5 billion should be reserved to refund his purchase of a disputed 20-acre plot in Nairobi’s Muthaiga suburb.
Although, their applications to join the succession case were dismissed.