How Kihika's family firm acquired Kenya Railways land

The acquisition of a prime parcel of land next to the State House, Nakuru, by a firm linked to Governor Susan Kihika’s family is at the centre of a political and legal storm.

Documents obtained by The Standard show how Crown Freight Solutions Limited, linked to Governor Kihika and her husband Samuel Mburu Kamau, acquired the land in 2023.

The firm, incorporated on February 14, 2023, secured a 45-year lease for land parcel Nakuru Municipality Block 11/126/2 from the Kenya Railways Corporation.

Documents show that the firm acquired the land barely five months after its registration.

According to a certificate of lease seen by The Standard, the firm took over ownership of the 3.7-acre parcel in Milimani starting June 1, 2023.

The company also obtained a 45-year lease for another parcel of land — Nakuru Municipality Block 11/126/1 — measuring 1.58 acres.

In its 502nd board meeting, the Kenya Railways Corporation approved the lease request and communicated the decision to Crown Freight Solutions Limited on June 23, 2023.

On January 30, 2024, the company applied for permission from the Nakuru County Government to construct a proposed commercial multi-storey building. The request was approved on February 16, 2024.

Following a review of the Environmental Impact Assessment report, the National Environment Management Authority issued a licence on May 6, 2024, allowing the construction of a four-star hotel valued at Sh2,993,883,653.

The proposed hotel will consist of six storeys — a basement, ground floor and six additional floors — with 193 guest rooms, dining and entertainment areas, a restaurant, a green roof, a solar installation, a swimming pool and other amenities.

In May 2025, the company wrote to the National Environment Management Authority seeking approval to extend construction work beyond the specified hours.

In a letter dated May 14, 2025, the authority granted the request.

“This is to confirm that you have been allowed to extend the working hours at the construction site to include night hours,” read the letter signed by County Director for Environment Joseph Kopejo.

However, the approval came with conditions that only internal finishing and installations would be undertaken during the night.

The company was also required to put in place measures to ensure that activities carried out during the extended hours would not cause noise or nuisance.

The project has also become the centre of a political dispute between Governor Kihika and Nakuru Senator Tabitha Karanja, culminating in a defamation suit.

Kihika filed the case at the High Court after remarks made by Karanja during a church service in Nakuru on December 21, 2025.

In the suit, the governor claims the senator alleged that she had misappropriated public funds from the Nakuru County Government to build a family-owned hotel reportedly worth billions of shillings.

Karanja reportedly claimed the hotel was constructed on land belonging to the Kenya Railways Corporation and that county resources were used for the project.

Through lawyers from Ahmednasir Abdullahi Advocates, Kihika argues that the remarks were made outside Parliament and therefore do not enjoy parliamentary privilege under Article 117 of the Constitution.

She insists that she has never been implicated in corruption or misuse of public funds by any investigative body, including the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission or the Directorate of Criminal Investigations.

“The allegations made by the defendant are entirely false, as there exists no audit report, investigation, criminal charge or administrative finding by the Auditor-General, Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, or any other lawful authority implicating me in misappropriation of public funds, corruption or abuse of office,” the suit reads.

According to the Governor, Crown Freight Solutions Limited — where she is listed as a director alongside her husband — legally leased the land from the Kenya Railways Corporation for 45 years in October 2023.

She said the development was financed through private business proceeds and loans from KCB Bank.

The Governor also dismissed claims that the development poses a security threat to State House, saying all necessary planning, development, environmental and regulatory approvals had been obtained.

Kihika is seeking a court declaration that Karanja’s remarks were false and defamatory, a permanent injunction restraining further publication of the allegations, a public retraction and apology, and general, aggravated and exemplary damages.