More than 100 families have been left counting heavy losses after bulldozers flattened high-end homes on a disputed piece of land in Marurui area along Nairobi’s Northern Bypass.
The demolitions, which began on Monday, saw multi-million-shilling houses reduced to rubble under tight security, with police officers deployed to oversee the operation.
Residents watched helplessly as their homes, some still under construction, were brought down.
However, the property had long been earmarked for demolition after a court found that the land on which it stood had been unlawfully subdivided and sold to unsuspecting buyers by a private company.
Demolition crews moved in with heavy machinery, tearing down perimeter walls before proceeding to flatten the high-value homes.
By Tuesday, the once-admired structures along the Northern Bypass had been reduced to rubble, as devastated homeowners watched helplessly.
Police officers were deployed in numbers to oversee the exercise, enforcing a court order that authorised the legally registered owner, Langton Limited, to repossess the land.
“Saa hii chenye kinaendelea ni kubomolewa tunabomolewa hatujui tufanye nini…tunajaribu tu kuhamisha hamisha vitu..makuku,” said an affected homeowner, Ngige.
Some of the affected buildings were still under construction, with owners preparing to occupy what they believed were their dream homes. Despite the shock, there had been prior warnings, including public notices cautioning prospective buyers about the disputed ownership.
“Hii ni jasho yangu nimeng’ang’ana…watoto wameenda shule watafika hawana pa kukaa…” Ngige added.
The property has been at the centre of a protracted legal dispute since 2019. Earlier this year, the Environment and Land Court reaffirmed Langton Investments as the legitimate owner and ordered the cancellation of all irregular titles.
Court documents indicate that an entity identified as Meron Limited allegedly undertook an unlawful subdivision of the land.
The court declared the process illegal and directed that all titles and certificates issued by the subdivision be revoked, paving the way for repossession by the rightful owner.
