Land dispute ghosts haunt Mudavadi as court strips him of estate role

Prime Cabinet Secretary and CS for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Musalia Mudavadi has suffered a fresh setback in a family property dispute after the High Court revoked his appointment as an administrator of the estate of his late stepmother, Rosebella Jerono Mudavadi.

The decision adds another chapter to a string of property-related court battles involving the senior government official, including a separate dispute in which a company has challenged his claim to a parcel of land in Vihiga.

In the latest case, Mudavadi’s stepsister, Catherine Kilwatso, successfully challenged his continued role in administering their mother’s estate, arguing that he could not be relied upon to protect her interests and those of other beneficiaries in the proposed sale of family property.

Vihiga High Court Judge Reuben Nyakundi revoked Mudavadi’s appointment and replaced him with Kilwatso, who will now administer the estate jointly with Geoffrey Kegode Mudavadi.

The order took effect on September 8, 2026.

“One Wycliff Musalia Mudavadi appointment as an administrator be and is hereby revoked and in his place one Catherine Kilwatso Mudavadi together with Geofrey Kegode Mudavadi be and are hereby appointed as legal personal representatives of the estate of Rosebella Jerono Mudavadi,” Justice Nyakundi ruled.

The judge also directed that the grant of letters of administration intestate issued on July 9, 2025 be revoked and fresh instruments issued to the new administrators.

Family estate fight

Rosebella died on November 24, 2021, but succession proceedings were not concluded until four years later.

A gazette notice confirming the appointment of Mudavadi and Kegode as administrators was published on May 26, 2025, before the High Court formally issued them with instruments to administer the estate on July 9, 2025.

The administrators were required to administer the estate in accordance with the law and render a just and true account of their dealings.

The dispute centred on Transnzoia/Kapkoi/258, a family property in Trans Nzoia County that the beneficiaries had agreed should be sold and the proceeds distributed.

According to the court proceedings, the 12 beneficiaries had initially agreed that Mudavadi and Kegode would administer the estate.

But Kilwatso later objected to the manner in which the estate was being handled, particularly the proposed disposal of the property.

Her position changed during the dispute, with the court being told that she ultimately decided not to sell her portion of the property.

The other beneficiaries, however, were prepared to proceed with the sale after her portion had been hived off.

Kegode defended the administration, telling the court that all 12 beneficiaries had agreed to the filing of a summons for partial confirmation of the grant dated July 28, 2025 to facilitate the transaction involving the Trans Nzoia property.

He said Kilwatso had herself consented to and executed an agreement approving the partial confirmation of the grant and proposed mode of distribution.

Kegode described the grounds raised by Kilwatso in her objection as frivolous, arguing that the beneficiaries would ultimately share the property equally.

He questioned why none of the other beneficiaries had raised concerns similar to those advanced by Kilwatso.

“Indeed the objector has changed her mind to sell her portion of the property but other beneficiaries shall proceed with sale after hiving off her portion,” Kegode told the court.

Despite the objections, Justice Nyakundi ultimately ordered the change of administrators, stripping Mudavadi of his role in the estate.

Another property battle

The latest setback comes against the backdrop of another property dispute in Vihiga in which Mudavadi has been embroiled in litigation with Nasibu Holdings Limited.

The company claims it had occupied the contested property for about 13 years before Mudavadi briefly took possession in 2024.

The dispute escalated after Vihiga Principal Magistrate Jacqueline Agonda determined that Nasibu Holdings was the rightful owner of the property.

Mudavadi subsequently moved to the High Court, challenging the magistrate’s decision and arguing that the trial court had prematurely determined ownership at a preliminary stage.

Environment and Land Court Judge Esther Asati suspended proceedings before the magistrate’s court pending the hearing of Mudavadi’s challenge.

However, the judge declined Mudavadi’s application seeking to remove Nasibu Holdings from the property.

Mudavadi had asked the court to order the parties to return to the status quo that existed before September 24, 2024, when he had briefly been in possession of the land.

Justice Asati rejected the request, noting that Mudavadi had been in possession between July and September 2024 but that the situation had subsequently changed following the trial court’s decision.

“To order for status quo as prayed will involve removal of the Respondent (Nasibu Holdings) from the land and handing over of vacant possession to the applicant (Mudavadi). That is not the function of an order of status quo,” the judge ruled.

‘Illegal possession’

Nasibu Holdings, through Oliver Kehodo Osengo, opposed Mudavadi’s case and argued that the suit was defective.

The company told the court that Mudavadi had taken possession of the property in July 2024 without notice or a court order, allegedly forcing Nasibu Holdings out.

According to the company, the trial court subsequently corrected the situation by restoring it to possession.

Nasibu Holdings argued that Mudavadi, having obtained possession without lawful authority, was now asking the High Court to legitimise what the company described as an unlawful act.

The company accused him of seeking the protection of the court to “clothe his actions with colour of the law”.

Mudavadi’s legal challenge therefore remains separate from the succession dispute involving his stepmother’s estate.

The court’s decision also leaves the proposed sale and distribution of the Trans Nzoia property subject to the fresh administration arrangements ordered by Justice Nyakundi.