Family appeals to Uhuru to intervene as Sh6b land tussle delays burial

The Gathumba family, from left: Jackson Mutua, Joyce Mukonyo, Lithah Kathumba and Amina Kathumba. They have sought President Uhuru Kenyatta's help to end a Sh6 billion land dispute. Inset: Their sep-mother Beatrice Syokau Gathumba [David Njaaga, Standard]

A family in Machakos has appealed to President Uhuru Kenyatta to intervene in a Sh6 billion land dispute.

The dispute has put on hold the burial of their relative Beatrice Syokau Gathumba, and her body has been lying in Machakos Funeral Home since June 2014.

The burial has been postponed several times following the tussle between Syokau’s kin and individuals claiming a Sh6 billion piece of land in Nairobi’s Embakasi area.

Syokau’s step daughters accuse some individuals of trying to take over the 49.7 hectares off Mombasa road. The land lies next to the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).

On May 11, the family was slapped with a Sh2,869,660.20 legal cost for the several cases pertaining to the burial of Gathumba.

Legal costs

Her step daughter, Lita Kathumbi, says although the courts allowed the burial to proceed pending hearing of the land dispute, the family could not afford to meet the legal costs.

“The objective of writing to you is to request for financial help regarding the burial of our late mother, who still lies in the morgue to this day,” Kathumbi’s letter dated June 19, and received in the office of the president on June 21, reads in part.

The letter is copied to Attorney General Kihara Kariuki, National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi, Director of Public Prosecution Noordin Hajji, Lands CS Faridah Karoney, and Inspector General Joseph Boinett, among others.

According to court documents, a Mr Silvester Ndeti had obtained a burial permit saying he was a relative of Gathumba.

Court orders

However, Litha and her sister Amina Kathumba went to court and successfully obtained orders to stop Gathumba’s burial and demanded a postmortem examination to establish the cause of her death.

Ndeti had indicated that Syokau was 89 years at the time of her death while her identity documents showed she was 69 then, having been born in 1945.

The land was originally owned by John Kathumba Makuthi, who died in 1989.

The businessman had two wives, Esther Nzola, who died in 2009, and Syokau. Nzola had six daughters and four sons, while Syokau had no child.

At some point, the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) was reported to have had intentions to compulsorily acquire the land for the expansion of JKIA. The plan was, however, put on hold following constant wrangles.

The dispute has been subjected to multiple investigations and court hearings. Syokau’s family claims their step mother’s death was connected to the row.

Letters of administration

In one of the cases on November 12, 2014, Justice William Musyoka granted Litha and Amina letters of administration over their late father’s estate. 

On November 11, 2015, Justice Lydia Achode confirmed the grant to the two under succession cause 980 of 2015.

On March 21, 2011 a Mr Dickson Wambua Makau, through lawyer Solomon Kivuva, claimed he had been granted a power of attorney by Syokau, which was eventually registered in the Ministry of Lands on March 25, 2011.

The family has disputed this, arguing that their step-mother had not obtained the administrator’s rights and could not have nominated an administrator.