Surveyors arrive at troubled farm

Surveyors have started streaming to the troubled Kihiu Mwiri farm in Murang'a County, giving a ray of hope to shareholders that they will finally get justice after 50 years of waiting.

The shareholders also hope that the adjudication of the 2,000-acre farm will bring to an end the long and sad chapter in the history of the land company, which has claimed the lives of eight directors and other officials disappearing without a trace.

An incomplete structure at Kihiu Mwiri land-buying company in Gatanga constituency, Kiambu County. (PHOTO: MOSE SAMMY/STANDARD)

Yesterday, the shareholders could not hide their joy as the surveyors arrived to start the process of demarcating the land to pave way for issuance of title deeds by September 3 as promised by the Government.

The surveyors had also toured the area on Monday to familiarise themselves with the ground.

They were holed up in a day-long meeting yesterday in a Thika hotel to strategise how to carry out the enormous task ahead of them that is expected to put to an end the more than three decades of bloodshed at the giant land-buying company.

Shareholders who spoke to The Standard said they were happy to see surveyors on the ground, saying this showed the Government was keen to keep its promise of issuing them with title deeds by September.

Security has been beefed up in the expansive farm.

An police officer who spoke to The Standard in confidence said a special police unit will arrive at Kihiu Mwiri this week to beef up security as surveyors get down to work.

When The Standard visited the expansive farm, fear and suspicion was still evident on the faces of shareholders.

Kimani Gichuru, who bought his share in 1978 when the land buying company was closing the sale of shares, said the issue of double and multiple allocations by the directors was the source of the killings.

"Today, you will find about five people laying claim to the same piece of land that they were sold by the same directors. They are the cause of the entire problem that the company is currently experiencing," said Kimani.

Another member Naomi Wanjiku said the conflict in the land firm was as a result of the resolve by some directors to oppose the issuance of title deeds in order to continue selling the land at will.

"They are opposed to members getting titles at all cost so that they can hide their past misdeeds and continue preying on unsuspecting buyers," said Wanjiku.

Residents raised an accusing finger against the local administration officer, who they claimed had helped fuel the mess.

They want local administrators not to be involved in the whole process of surveying and issuance of title deeds as "they are part of the problem".

The Standard is privy to information collected by detectives and a task force formed to hasten the issuance of title deeds showing that part of the land could have been allocated to some former senior government officials.

The shareholders said they will also be seeking a return of 130 acres which were sold by company directors without their consent.

The giant land-buying company, which was formed in 1963, has been embroiled in a bitter leadership wrangle pitting two rival groups, with each seeking to control the firm in order to control the vast piece of land and assets running into billions of shillings.

Shareholders were required to contribute Sh1,200, with one share going for Sh20, to be allocated a quarter an acre.

The price of the land has, however, skyrocketed to between Sh1 million and Sh1.2 million for a quarter an acre due to Kihiu Mwiri's proximity to Thika town.

Since 2009, the company has been led by two rival camps led by Kimani Kuria, who was murdered in May this year, and Peter Kariuki who went missing last month.

Another four directors have been killed while four others have gone missing without a trace.