The scandal of falsified title deeds at the Coast

A case by a cement manufacturer against six individuals over land ownership along the Indian Ocean strip in Kilifi, has lifted the lid on a scandal of falsified title deeds.

Although the individuals have entered into consent with the firm to surrender the pieces of subdivided land, the case has put into light issues relating to multiple allocation of title deeds to the same pieces of land at the Coast region.

Mombasa Cement Ltd had sued the six and the Attorney General over alleged conspiracy and collusion to illegally procure duplicate title documents to parcels of land registered on its 499 hectares of land.

A consent was later adopted by the Environment and Land Court in Mombasa as an order of the court and signed by advocates representing Mombasa Cement Ltd, Attorney General and the six individuals.

In the consent agreed by the parties, the only valid title on the land is that being held by Mombasa Cement Ltd.

The company had sued the Land Registrar of Mombasa and the Director of Surveys, besides the Attorney General, Nicholas Njau, Catherine Nzau, Alice Nyaruai, Andrew Mukiri, Jacqueline Adamda and Florence Nzuki.

According to the cement manufacturer, all the title documents were along a strip of land along the ocean but within its land.

In its petition, Mombasa Cement Ltd had said that on or about September during routine due diligence it emerged that duplicate titles subdividing its land were issued to Mr Njau, Ms Nzau, Ms Nyaruai, Mr Mukiri, Ms Adamda and Ms Nzuki.

It argued that it has been an active economic user of the land as evidenced by the building of a factory and that no part of the land had been at any time available for alienation to the respondents.

“The petitioner has not surrendered any part of its land to the government for allocation to any other party, the land was therefore not available for allocation to anyone,” part of the petition stated.

The cement manufacturer also argued in its petition that while it demonstrated how it purchased the land, Mr Njau, Ms Nzau, Ms Nyaruai, Mr Mukiri, Ms Adamda and Ms Nzuki had “freshly minted” titles over an alleged subdivision of its land.

In the consent, the parties declared that the 13 title documents issued from the subdivision of the Mombasa Cement Land are null and void as they were issued in breach of its constitutional rights to property.

“Upon execution of this consent, the fourth to tenth respondents (Mr Njau, Ms Nzau, Ms Nyaruai, Mr Mukiri, Ms Adamda and Ms Nzuki) undertake to surrender to the petitioner, through their advocates, for onward transmission to the Mombasa Land Registrar the title documents for cancellation forthwith,” part of the consent states.

The consent also saw the parties agree that the Land Registrar in Mombasa be directed to cancel, expunge and nullify all records relating to the title documents.

Further, the consent also directs the Director of Survey to cancel, expunge and nullify all deed plans and all survey records relating to the title documents.

“The fourth to tenth respondents be restrained by a permanent order of injunction from entering upon, interfering or in any way infringing upon the petitioner’s proprietary rights to any part of its land,” states the consent.

According to the consent, the respondents will have no claims against Mombasa Cement Ltd and that the cement manufacturer declared that it will have no claim against the six individuals over the parcels of land once titles have been surrendered and claims relinquished on the properties.

“The consent orders as contained in the letter of consent dated November 30, 3023 is hereby adopted as an order of this court,” ruled Justice Stephen Kibunja.

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