MP Rigathi Gachagua Accused of Grabbing Sh1.5 Billion Parcel of Land Near JKIA
Mathira MP Rigathi Gachagua has been accused of grabbing a parcel of land belonging to a retired civil servant.
John Michael Ohas, the former director of Physical Planning at the Ministry of Lands, claims that Gachagua fraudulently transferred the parcel to his company Wamunyoro Investment Ltd.
The property is located off Mombasa Road near the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) and is estimated to be worth Sh1.5 billion.
Ohas filed an application at the Environment and Land Court seeking orders to revoke the title deed issued to MP Gachagua. The case was mentioned on February 12th before Justice S. Okong’o, who set the hearing date for June 7th.
Ohas has named Gachagua, his wife Dorcas Gachagua, Wamunyoro Investment Ltd, the Attorney-General, Land Registrar, National Lands Commission, Ministry of Lands, Directors of Physical Planning and Survey, and the Nairobi County Government as respondents in the case.
In court documents, Ohas says that he was allocated the property LR No.209/12077 on February 3rd, 1994 by then-President Daniel Arap Moi. He was allocated the parcel through his company Columbus Two Thousand Ltd after accepting the offer and paying Sh50,000 in cash a Sh814,550 through cheque in 1996.
He later contacted the director of Survey and a licensed surveyor G.O. Wayumba, who produced a deed plan No. 192966.
Ohas says he fell ill in 1996 and was flown to the UK for treatment, prompting him to take early retirement. It is while undergoing treatment abroad that Gachagua acquired a fake allotment letter with the help of Lands ministry officials.
“With the help of Lands officials, they hid file No. 157048, stole the Deed Plan No. 192966, and registered the title IR. No 90923 in the name of Karandi Farm Ltd, Peter Mbugua and Pauline Mulinge.”
Ohas adds: “When my family members who were in a dire need of funds for my treatment tried to access the suit property in order to sell the same, they were chased by youths stationed to guard the property.”
Documents indicate that Mbugua and Ms. Mulinge transferred the suit property to Karandi Farm Ltd at Sh24 million. Karandi directors; Rigathi Gachagua and Dorcas Gachagua signed the deal and later transferred the land to Wamunyoro Investment Ltd, where the MP and his wife are listed as directors.
Ohas reported the matter to the Land Ministry and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).
“Since the investigations by the DCI were completed and a fraud established, they instructed the Department of Land to recommend the cancellation of the fraudulent title and issue a genuine one to Columbus Two Thousand Ltd,” he says in a sworn affidavit.
Ohas says they later planned for meetings at the Land office to rectify the irregularity but Gachagua did not show up on three occasions, forcing him to move to court.