Portland demolitions evictees talk of unpaid loans, lost savings
A woman wails uncontrollably as her house in East African Portland in Mavoko was being demolished.
What you need to know:
- Zacharia Marwa, 53, said he had lost property worth Sh4.5 million. He had obtained a loan to build the three blocks of rental houses.
- Another investor, Ms Eunice Wanjugu, said she had spent Sh18 million to construct a modern maisonette as her retirement home.
Day four of EAPCC land demolitions was marked by widespread theft of building material, including roofing, doors and windows, even as homeowners battled to save their belongings before bulldozers crushed their houses to rubble.
Police arrested several people who were caught stealing building material, with the thieves reportedly targeting palatial houses. The exercise has seen multimillion-shilling homes, churches and schools razed.
On Monday, Nation caught up with Zacharia Marwa, 53, who said he had lost property worth Sh4.5 million. He had obtained a loan to build the three blocks of rental houses.
A bulldozer demolishes a house on East African Portland Cement property on October 14, 2023.
“I bought the two plots from the society at Sh400,000 per plot five years ago. I have share certificates to prove it,” he said.
Another investor, Eunice Wanjugu, said she had spent Sh18 million to construct a modern maisonette as her retirement home. To accomplish this, she added, she borrowed Sh2 million from a bank.
“We are pleading with the government to compensate us for the loss. I am not sure I will ever recover. My home was near completion,” said Ms Wanjugu.
A bulldozer demolishes a house on East African Portland Cement property on October 14, 2023.
A few metres away, Esther Macharia, 37, could barely hold back her tears as she narrated to Nation how she had lost her Sh6 million investment.
“I borrowed a loan from a sacco to build the rental houses. I produced the relevant documents issued by the society that sold me the land and they were found to be genuine before the loan was approved,” she said.
She added that her building approvals were done by officers from the Machakos County Government.
“The officers stopped my construction at first, until I later got their approvals.”
Most of the homeowners who spoke to Nation had Machakos County construction approvals and payment receipts.
They had also applied for electricity connections from Kenya Power successfully.
Some of the palatial homes had three-phase power connection.
A homeowner, Ms Hawaliwi Ibrahim, called on the government to investigate and prosecute those who sold the land to unsuspecting buyers.
“We have been conned. I lost Sh4.5 million. We paid the money via financial institutions that can be traced. We want the culprits arrested immediately,” she said bitterly, while accusing police officers of stealing household items from abandoned homes.
At Mountain View Baptist Church and Academy, teachers tried to salvage any property that they could lay their hands on.
Pastor Shadrack Musau said the church had lost property worth Sh4 million.
“We had 150 learners who were to sit for Kapsea [Kenya Primary School Education Assessment] exams. Teachers have lost their jobs. This is barbaric,” he said.
Local leaders criticised the government for allowing the demolitions. Mavoko MP Patrick Makau demanded the arrest of individuals implicated in the lands scam while pointing an accusing finger at the Machakos County Government.
“Let the government move with speed to arrest those who conned people. The county government ought to be investigated for issuing construction approvals since 2014. We do not want double-speak from leaders,” he said.
Mwala MP Vincent Musyoka slammed local leaders for faulting President William Ruto over demolitions.
“My heart bleeds for the victims. Let leaders stop shedding crocodile tears. Let them stop associating President Ruto with the demolitions. The court pronounced itself last Monday. Those who pocketed innocent Kenyans' money ought to be held responsible," he said.
On Saturday, Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka condemned the demolitions, saying, over 20,000 families have been left in the cold.
