A title deed.
A private developer contracted by the government for an affordable housing project in the city used a title deed for the public land to secure a Sh1.9 billion bank loan, Nation.Africa has established.
It's the latest twist in the missing title deed saga for one of the projects in Jeevanjee, Ngara, built on land owned by the Nairobi County government.
While it was revealed during the recent Nairobi County Assembly Departmental Planning Committee that the two title deeds for the affordable housing projects in Pangani and Jeevanjee were missing, the title deed for Jeevanjee drew mixed reactions.
Patrick Mbogo, the County Executive Committee (CEC) member for Built Environment and Urban Planning, said that former Nairobi governor Mike Sonko had the title deed for the Jeevanjee estate.
However, the latest details have revealed that the Jeevanjee estate title deed under L.R No. 209/5458 registered at the Registry of Titles in Nairobi under I.R 199739/1 was used as one of the securities to acquire a Sh1.9 billion loan from the National Bank of Kenya.
According to documents obtained by Nation.Africa, a joint venture agreement shows that Nairobi City County – the developer of the housing project – selected Jabavu Village Limited as the development partner to undertake the renewal and development of Bachelors Jeevanjee Estate under the terms of the joint venture agreement, which was sealed in March 2019.
The process of obtaining the loan was initiated in December 2022 and was fully processed in May 2023, but the project is still in limbo.
Documents indicate that the National Bank of Kenya processed banking facilities for Jabavu Village (K) Limited, which is the borrower, in January 2023.
The approval came a month after the Nairobi County Assembly passed a motion moved by Majority Leader Peter Imwatok on April 19, 2023, seeking to use the Pangani title deed to secure a loan to finance urban renewal projects, particularly in the Pangani area.
Charles Kerich, Nairobi County CEC in charge of Finance and Planning, neither confirmed nor denied the allegations, but said the matter is under investigation. He added that how the developer used the title deed of the public land to secure the loan without the approval of the County Assembly will be revealed once the investigation is over.
“The Lands Committee of Nairobi County Assembly is seized of this matter and is actively enquiring into the facts around it. Let us give them time to conclude,” Mr Kerich said.
Attempts to contact the National Bank of Kenya to confirm whether they had the title deed were unsuccessful as they could neither confirm nor deny that they had processed the loan.
Reacting to the allegations, Mr Sonko claimed that he was being used as a scapegoat by some leaders in the county government to divert attention from the reality surrounding the title deeds.
Mr Sonko said that during his administration, beneficiaries who were to be affected by the project were given compensation of Sh600,000 each with the assurance that they would be given priority when the houses were completed.
“Deal with the real issues – he projects have stalled, and we know that there was Covid-19 by then – instead of tarnishing my name. I will not allow that to happen. The title is with the National Bank of Kenya,” Mr Sonko said.
He questioned the timing of the planning committee, which he said came after tenants waiting to occupy the Jeevanjee houses complained about the stalled project.
Mr Sonko accused the administration of Governor Johnson Sakaja as well as members of the County Assembly of "laziness" for never thinking of seeking the truth about the title deed since he left office in 2020 following his impeachment.
He also accused some officials in Governor Sakaja's office of being silent on the matter, yet some were present when the title deed was placed under the custody of Stephen Gathuita Mwangi, who was then under the Urban Planning Department.
Mr Mwangi is the current CEC for Boroughs, Administration and Personnel docket after recent changes made by Governor Sakaja.
“The charge was registered on May 29, 2023, three years after my impeachment. Let them stop misleading Kenyans and do their work.”
The county had claimed that the overall construction completion of the Jeevanjee Housing Project is estimated at 46 percent and that the developer aims to complete the entire project by September 2026.
“The developer will first complete all affordable housing by December 2025 and complete market units by September 2026,” Mr Mbogo told the Planning Committee chaired by Alvin Olando Palapala in its recent sitting.
A total of 1,830 units are expected to be built in Jeevanjee Estate, of which 1,464 units are to be allocated to the developer while 80 units will be reserved for former tenants.
In addition, 111 units are reserved for rental and other units will be sold to the Nairobi City County Executive, Nairobi City County Public Service Board, Hon Members and staff of the Nairobi City County Assembly.
