Court prohibits Renton from undertaking any construction on Ruai sewer land

The Kenya judiciary has turned down a claim of 1,643 acres of land in Ruai worth Sh13 billion by Renton Company Limited.

Renton wanted the land that area peasants claim it is theirs at risk of being grabbed.

The property is claimed by Kamunyonge Squatters and former employees of Embakasi Ranching Company Limited that was founded in 1978 by the then president, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta.

Under President Uhuru Kenyatta's administration (2013 to 2022), the government had preserved the land under dispute as a protected property earmarked for the expansion of Nairobi's sewer system.

Then president Kenyatta had announced that he intended to procure a Sh20 billion loan from the Africa Development Bank to finance the expansion of the Dandora Estate Waste Sewerage and Treatment Plant in a bid to address the capital city's waste management challenges. 

The conflict escalated in April 2020 when a demolition exercise was carried out under the direction of the Lands Principal Secretary Nicholas Muraguri and Water and Sanitation counterpart Joseph Irungu. 

They justified the government's repossession of the land as necessary to prevent ongoing illegal occupation and safeguard public utilities.

When the Kenya Kwanza Alliance government came to power under President William Ruto, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki in December 2023 issued a new gazette notice reversing the protection of the property as public utility.

The move opened floodgates for the land to be acquired by private developers.

But now, Justice Ann Omollo of the Nairobi court has overturned CS Kindiki's recent directive, declaring that the title held by Renton Company Limited was acquired illegally and through improper procedures.

The court has ordered the cancellation of the title and explicitly prohibited Renton from undertaking any construction or sales on the disputed parcels, with exceptions made for areas designated for sewerage development and housing for squatters.