Kengen Boss in land tussle

Ex-minister Mbathi

trapped in land tussle

 

By Martin Masai

FORMER Cabinet Minister Titus Mbathi is embroiled in a tussle that exposes his illegal occupation of someone’s land and possible conflict of interest.

Mr Mbathi: Conflict of interest?

Mbathi, who is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of KenGen   entered into a parcel  of land in Masongaleni Settlement Scheme LR No 93  which is approximately 25.5 hectares and planted  60,000 Eucalyptus trees he plans to sell to Kenya Power as electricity polls.

Mr Kaleve shows his Title Deed

Masongaleni Settlement Scheme is the controversial land  set aside for squatters from Kalembwani and Kyulu Hills but was grabbed  by politicians led by Mulu Mutisya and State Officials. Though the State cancelled some of the allocations to the political class, some remained and the land Mr Mbathi  has entered into  is part of the scheme

Records show the owner is Mr. Hissles Kaleve, a former Executive House Keeper at State House. According to Kaleve, the ex minister approached him intending to buy the then untitled land and agreed verbally that he could take the land at Sh 1m as  all he had was a Letter of Allotment.

Later Mbathi told Kaleve he could not buy the land without a Title Deed, prompting the owner to commence the process of processing it.

During a meeting at KenGen offices, Mbathi offered  Sh 100,000 to Mr Kaleve as  part payment of the property and to clear the outstanding balance once the title was made available,but  Mr.Kaleve declined,  insisting  that he wanted first to secure  the title then  proceed to transact the sale as the price would have changed with the title in his hands

 As the document was being processed, Kaleve received information that Mr Mbathi had entered his property to plant trees. He called the ex minister and during a meeting at Kengen offices, Mbathi assured him that they would not disagree over the property.

Once the title was out, Keleve summoned his family and expressed hi s interest to sale it. But the family rebuffed him and informed him to table his financial needs so that his children could finance them rather than sell a family property. Kaleve then returned to Mr Mbathi to infirm him of the new development and a hot exchange ensued, with Mr Mbathi insisting that children had no say in Mr Kaleve’s land.

Nevertheless, Kaleve now demanded that Mr Mbathi leave the property, which a blossoming crop of trees. He returned  and made an new written offer to Mr Mbathi to either buy the property at Sh 5.5m or lease it at Shj 200,000.

According to the letter dated   November 11,2010, Kaleve and family wrote to Hon.Titus Mbathi addressing him on the decision they made as a family about the issue of the land purchase .First they decided to give him an offer to buy the land  at Sh. 5,500,000/=) ,and second to lease the land at Kshs,200,000 for 6 years but the lease to be broken into two terms renewable contract for 3 years each term and should  be fully paid at the beginning of each term at 600,000 per term, which was valid only for the year 2010 only unless he commits in writing. Mbathi tore up the letter leading to a physical encounter between him and Mr Kaleve at the Kengen offices where Mr Mbathi was seemingly transacting personal business. Kaleve left in a huff. Only this time did it dawn upon him that he had to contend with the fact that Mr Mbathi was insisting to buy the now titled property at the initial paltry Sh 1m that Mr Kaleve wanted when the land had no title.

It was at this time that he walked to his lawyers and dispatched a letter stopping Mbathi’s entry into  the land as he(Mbathi) had failed to respond to the letter he tore up and that he did not have any written agreement  over the alleged transaction.

 Mbathi’s lawyers shot back with a tinge of arrogance, inviting Mr Kaleve to ‘conclude’ their deal or pay up some Sh 8m that Mbathi has used on the land. Mbathi added that he entered the land with Kaleve’s  consent, out of which he  extensively developed it by among other thing planting eucalyptus trees after clearing the shrubs and trees from the land to the tune of Kshs.23,873,230/=,while the value of the eucalyptus trees continues to increase as  the trees grow to  maturity. 

Mbathi dropped the bombshell when he demanded to be paid Sh 23,873,230 as alleged value of the plantation within the next 14 days or seeks court action.

 Mr.  Kaleve insists  that there was no valid contract for  the sale and entry into and it was not prudent  for him to expend  8,000,000/= which was quite colossal  without  any concrete  legal documents  to justify such  an investment  “ unless the person’s ego is bigger than common sense”

Through his advocates Ms Koki Mbulu, Kaleve wrote what may be his last letter saying he would not entertain any further correspondence aimed at forcing him to do whatever it may be that Mbathi wanted or wished to be done. 

 The dalliance with Mr Mbathi raises some questions: Why would a person invest such valued investment in a property that is not his: What would be the motive of demanding Sh 23m from a man on whose farm you entered without a written agreement?; Is there no conflict of interest in Mr Mbathi planting trees to sale to an organization relate to the whose board he chairs? And finally, is it not quite telling that Mr Mbathi uses his office at Kengen to transact private business?

To get an answer to these questions Mr Mbathi refused to drawn into conversation in that regard and told The Anchor  to report on the matter at its own peril as such report would be subjudice. Stay Anchored!