Clansmen, Senator Moi clash over land ‘gifted’ to them by his father
Baringo Senator Gideon Moi.
The late President Daniel Moi’s clansmen, who are embroiled in a bitter dispute with Baringo Senator Gideon Moi over a 40-acre parcel of land, now want him barred from dealing with the property.
The clansmen, from President Moi's Kapchepkeres clan, have requested the Environment and Lands Court in Nakuru to restrain the senator from interfering with the land.
The 56 clansmen, led by Mr Simon Kipsang Yator, Michael Chebon and Michael Chirchir Korir, claim in court papers that Senator Moi has been interfering with their occupation of the parcel, which they say President Moi gave to them.
They claim Mr Moi conspired with the Nakuru Lands office and fraudulently obtained title deeds for the land and proceeded to carve and subdivide a portion of it with plans to sell pieces of it.
“The respondent is interfering with us on the land parcel and has even written letters to stop us from developing our portions in order to facilitate his intention,” the clansmen say in court papers.
“In the premises it is necessary that the court intervenes and injuncts them from their actions so as to preserve the status quo.”
The clan members, through their Keres Self Help group, moved to court last month, accusing the senator of planning to grab their land.
They claim they received the land from President Moi, who allegedly hived it off from his 100-acre parcel adjacent to the Kabarak farm owned by Rift Valley Hatcheries, a company Senator Moi owns.
The group claims they had approached Mzee Moi seeking to purchase the land, Rongai/Rongai Block 6/2, for clan members, who had raised Sh18 million.
Mzee Moi allegedly agreed to give them the land and asked Senator Moi to facilitate the processing of the title.
The court heard that Mzee Moi instructed a surveyor to subdivide the land into three parts: 40 acres to the group, 30 to Kabarak University Vice-Chancellor Henry Kiptiony Kiplagat and 30 to Senator Gideon Moi.
Court documents show that all the transaction documents between Mzee Moi and the group were drawn and witnessed by lawyer Evans Korir Kipchenger.
But the clan members claim Senator Moi, upon his father’s death, reneged on the agreement and prepared a title under his name and carved off at least eight acres from the 40 acres given to the group.
The senator dismissed the claims and denied knowledge of any existing agreement between his father and the group.
He called upon the court to dismiss the petition.
The court will rule in January next year.
