BUNGOMA, Kenya — The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has successfully recovered a prime parcel of public land worth Sh35 million belonging to the Ministry of State Department for Housing and Urban Development, after the Bungoma Environment and Land Court ruled that it had been illegally acquired by a private individual.
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The disputed half-acre property, located in the Milimani area of Bungoma Town next to the Bungoma State Lodge, was found to have been fraudulently transferred to Ms. Judy Nekoye, who demolished a government house on the site and erected a luxury maisonette valued at millions of shillings.
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In a judgment delivered on Thursday, October 9, 2025, Justice Enock Cherono declared that all transactions leading to Ms. Nekoye’s acquisition of the land, known as Bungoma Township/169, were fraudulent, illegal, null, and void. The court further nullified the Certificate of Lease and ordered her eviction from the government property.
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Justice Cherono also directed the Bungoma Land Registrar to rectify the Land Register by cancelling all illegal entries associated with the fraudulent allocations.
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During the proceedings, EACC advocate Ruth Ayunga told the court that investigations revealed the land was among several parcels reserved by the government in 1961 for the construction of residential houses for senior public officers.
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However, in 2004, the property was irregularly allocated to Charles Nyasani and Scolastica Nyakerario, who later transferred it to Ms. Nekoye in 2016.
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Ms. Nekoye subsequently moved to court seeking a declaration of ownership, a petition that the EACC opposed vigorously.
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After hearing the case, Justice Cherono ruled in favor of the EACC and issued the following orders:
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The Certificate of Lease registered on October 18, 2002, in favor of Nyasani and Nyakerario was fraudulently obtained and is null and void.
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The lease registered on October 24, 2016, in favor of Ms. Nekoye was fraudulent, illegal, and incapable of conferring ownership rights.
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The Land Registrar must cancel all entries linked to the illegal lease in respect of Bungoma Township/169.
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Reacting to the judgment, Emmanuel Were, a civil society and human rights defender, lauded the EACC for what he termed as “a major victory in the fight against land grabbing.”
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“I commend the EACC for recovering the grabbed government house worth Sh50 million back to the state,” said Were.
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He noted that land grabbing in Bungoma’s Milimani area has become rampant, with private developers illegally settling on government land earmarked for public projects.
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“Milimani estate in Bungoma town is public land. We wonder how some people managed to secure title deeds there. We urge EACC to investigate all such cases and evict anyone who has illegally occupied government property,” he added.
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Were said the ruling sends a strong message to individuals using influence and connections to illegally acquire public assets.
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“The court has done its work. If the evictee still stays in the house, we will stage protests to enforce the ruling. We will not allow public property to remain in private hands,” he warned.
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He further called on the EACC to extend its investigations beyond Bungoma to neighboring counties, citing widespread corruption in land offices that has enabled illegal allocations across Western Kenya.
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The judgment is part of the EACC’s ongoing national campaign to reclaim grabbed public property, especially prime government land across the country.
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Analysts say the ruling underscores the judiciary’s growing commitment to support anti-corruption initiatives and uphold accountability in public land management.
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