Why court barred government from evicting Makongeni families

The Environment and Land Court in Nairobi on Monday barred the government from demolishing and evicting Makongeni residents to pave the way for affordable housing.

Justice Charles Mbogo directed the Affordable Housing Board, the Lands Ministry and the Kenya Railways Retirees Benefits Scheme not to continue with the exercise that started last week until the application filed by Makongeni Residents Association, Samuel Ngugi, Collins Otieno, Karen Onyango, Seraphine Murugari and Wycliff Omiti is heard and determined.

“Upon reading the application in the absence of the counsel for the petitioners or applicants and the counsel for the respondents, I am satisfied that for the reasons indicated in the certificate of electronic evidence and the affidavits in support of the application, there is urgency in the application, and I certify it as urgent.

“It is hereby ordered the application will be heard inter partes on December 4, 2025 together with the application dated November 19, and in the meantime, I hereby proceed to grant prayers two, three and four of the application dated November 22, 2025,” ruled Justice Mbogo.

In the case, the residents complained that they were ambushed, while others told the court that they were yet to receive the Sh150,000 to allow them to look for new places to live.

Their lawyer, Willis Otieno, said that the government had allegedly resorted to violence to remove close to 35,000 residents who live in the colonial-era houses.

“The violent eviction commenced in the late hours of Friday November 21, 2025 and continued throughout the weekend including during the night without any notice whatsoever and days ahead of the earlier-communicated date of November 27, 2025.

"To facilitate the violent eviction, the respondents' officers and their hired goons unleashed untold violence upon the residents, including sexually assaulting women and girls,” argued Otieno.

He further said those contracted to demolish the houses cut off all electricity and water supply to the entire estate, leaving an estimated 8,000 households stranded.

In the meantime, a separate case was filed by Brian Riang’a, Daniel Ndiau and Joshua Choma. They claimed that the targeted properties and the land do not belong to the government. Instead, they told the court that they are owned by Kenya Railways retirees.

Their lawyer, Sam Kegengo, argued that the exercise was meant to have new tenants in place once the new houses are built.

"The petitioners and the people of Makongeni have been promised priority in the housing but are still apprehensive that this is a ruse to pave way for other people to occupy the affordable housing units once the project is complete,” argued Kegengo.

The lawyer further said there was no public participation. He stated that the notice issued to the tenants was too short for them to find decent homes.

Kegengo claimed that some of the retirees whose consent was sought are illiterate and were not aware that their signatures were to give a green light for the government to demolish the houses.

Before the court intervened, scenes of anguish unfolded across Makongeni as bulldozers rolled in, tearing down structures that had housed families for decades. Small business owners and residents say they have suffered massive losses and are calling for swift justice.

Elizabeth Muge, a longtime resident, has now spent three nights guarding the few belongings she managed to rescue.

“For the third night, I will be staying outside watching over my things,” she said. “We were given a five-day notice, told to register, and then left on our own. As business people we are stuck with no direction. I have been here for three days without food.”

Juma Muthehe, a former Kenya Railways employee retrenched in 1998, said the demolition worsened long-standing injustices.

“I worked for Kenya Railways for 24 years, and after we were retrenched, we were never paid. We have been in court for years. Those who started small businesses to survive have now been left with nothing,” he said.

For Mzee John Okoth, the brutality of the operation remains painful to recall. “Police were throwing tear gas as bulldozers pulled down houses. Some people feared there were children inside,” he said.

The 140-hectare estate, long earmarked for redevelopment, was set to host new modern housing units under the Affordable Housing Project. While residents were aware of the redevelopment plans, many say the eviction notice was abrupt and left them unprepared.

Although some residents received the promised Sh150,000 compensation meant to facilitate relocation within five days, others say they were still waiting for the money even as their houses lay in rubble. They were also promised a card guaranteeing priority allocation once the new housing units are complete, but the rollout remains unclear.

Despite the tension, many residents insist they are not opposed to the project; only the manner in which the eviction was handled.