Railway Land, a Road Junction and a Church: Kenya’s Anti-Graft Body Goes to Court Over Nairobi Plots

• Kenya’s EACC filed cases to recover five plots at Haile Selassie Avenue and Uhuru Highway
• The land was originally meant for Kenya Railways and later passed to private owners
• One plot is registered to Neno Evangelism Center
• The EACC is seeking Sh1.6 billion in compensation and mesne profits on two parcels

Kenya’s Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has gone to court to recover five parcels of land at the junction of Haile Selassie Avenue and Uhuru Highway in Nairobi, Citizen Digital reported on March 7, 2024. The plots were “originally intended for use by the Kenya Railways Corporation but are now owned by private individuals.”

The parcels include LR No. 209/9640, registered to Neno Evangelism Center, as well as plots registered to Arts 680 Limited, James Maina Nganga and Kobil Petroleum Limited, now Rubis Energy.

The commission said the railway corporation had surrendered some parcels in the 1950s and 1960s “for public projects such as government building and road infrastructure.” One plot had been designated as a road junction for traffic safety, and another had housed a public toilet owned by Nairobi City Council. In one case, the EACC is seeking “compensation and mesne profits totaling Kshs. 1.6 billion” for two parcels.

The case puts a church in the middle of a fight over whether public land set aside for roads and railways was lawfully allocated to private owners.

Churches in Jamaica sometimes acquire land that was once set aside for public use, whether road reserves, railway lands or government lots. Even if a title has been issued, the state may later argue that the land should never have been allocated. Before buying, a church should check the history of the parcel as well as the current title, and be cautious about land near roads, rail lines or other public infrastructure.