Activists protest payment for GSU land on Thika road

Two activists have gone to court to stop further payments of a disputed piece of land owned by the General Service Unit acquired for the Outer Ring Road Improvement project along Thika road.

Mr Okiya Omtatah and Mr Wycliffe Nyakina claimed that unscrupulous public officers of Kenya Urban Roads Authority (Kura), the National Land Commission, the lands ministry and the Attorney General, have embarked on a plan of reselling 6.7 acres of the 37.4 public land owned by GSU in Ruaraka.

They claimed that NLC has purportedly compulsorily acquired the said land from two companies — Afrison Export Import limited and Huelands limited.

They claimed that the said land has been handed over to Kura so that it can be used to improve the stretch of the Outer Ring Road between Thika Road junction and the Eastern bypass.

They faulted NLC for determining an exaggerated amount of Sh1, 472,690,000 as the compensation, which is to be paid through Almasi limited.

They told court that Almasi limited has already been paid Sh1, 208,906,425 leaving an outstanding amount of Sh208,906,426 and a further Sh3,070,000 for the GSU wall which will be demolished.

But according to the activists, if the monies are paid through Almasi limited which is a third party and a total stranger, there would be no money trail left in the banking system linking the two companies.

They argue that the two companies and even Almasi limited have no known assets and therefore they lack the capacity to refund the same since any money paid to them will be lost.

“All it will take is for them to deny ever receiving the money, this matter is of extreme urgency that his court needs to intervene and interdict fraudulent processes including immediately stopping any further payments being made as well as order the recovery of what has already been paid out,” Mr Omtata said.

They want Kura, the NLC, the Lands ministry and the AG ordered to make full disclosure of all transactions pertaining to the said land.