Special Features

The High Court has ordered Marriot Africa International Limited, a company linked to businessman Kamlesh Pattni, to vacate a disputed parcel of land in Kiambu within 120 days.

The court ruled that the property belongs to the estate of the late intelligence chief James Kanyotu after finding that the company failed to prove it acquired a valid title.

The decision ends a long-running land dispute involving allegations of forgery, unlawful transfers, and trespass.

Court rules in favour of James Kanyotu’s estate

Justice Oguttu Mboya of the Environment and Land Court delivered the ruling in a case involving Marriot Africa International Limited and representatives of the late James Kanyotu’s estate.

The dispute involved land parcel L.R No. 11261/76, located within the Kangaita Coffee Estate in Kiambu.

The estate, represented by Margaret Nyakinyua Murigu and her children, argued that Marriot Africa occupied the land through irregular transactions carried out during the succession period.

Judge questions validity of land transfer

Justice Mboya ruled that Marriot Africa failed to demonstrate that it obtained a lawful title to the property.

The court found irregularities in the transfer process, including questionable documents and alleged violations of land transfer procedures.

The judge stated that a title obtained through fraud cannot be protected by the law.

“No amount of investment or good faith can sanitize a title that is born of fraud,” the court ruled.

Company argued it was an innocent buyer

Marriot Africa told the court that it acquired the property legally and followed the required procedures before registration.

The company argued that it obtained approvals from relevant authorities, including the Lands Control Board, and warned that eviction would cause significant financial losses.

However, the court rejected the argument, stating that unlawful ownership cannot be protected regardless of the investment made on the land.

Court issues eviction orders

The High Court issued a permanent injunction stopping Marriot Africa from interfering with the property.

The company has been given 120 days to leave the land and remove any structures or installations placed on the property.

The court further directed that if the company fails to comply, eviction should be carried out under the supervision of the Officer Commanding Police Division and the County Land Registrar.

Land officials ordered to audit property history

Justice Mboya also directed the Chief Land Registrar and the Director of Surveys to review the history of the disputed parcel.

The officials are required to submit a report within 60 days.

The judge warned that individuals involved in issuing irregular land documents could face further legal action.

Kanyotu family welcomes ruling

Members of the late spy chief’s family welcomed the decision, describing it as a victory after years of legal battles.

The family maintained that the land was part of James Kanyotu’s estate and should be protected from unlawful claims.

Legal observers say the ruling could have wider implications for Kenya’s property sector, especially in cases involving disputed titles and alleged fraudulent land transfers.

The decision reinforces the principle that ownership rights must be supported by lawful acquisition and valid documentation.

A storm is brewing at the heart of Kenya’s road infrastructure agency.

Nairobi-based public interest litigant Joseph Masambu has filed a constitutional petition seeking to remove Silas Kinoti from office.

Kinoti is the Director General of the Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA).

The petitioner accuses him of overstaying his term in office. He says the continued stay raises questions about accountability and legality.

Petitioner challenges KURA boss’ tenure

The petition was filed before the Employment and Labour Relations Court.

It claims Kinoti’s three-year term expired over a year ago.

His term began on June 19, 2020.

According to the suit documents, there is no record of a lawful extension or reappointment by the appointing authority.

The appointing authority is the Cabinet Secretary for Transport.

The petitioner claims Kinoti has continued to “unlawfully usurp and occupy” the office of Director General.

He argues that this violates the Constitution, the Kenya Roads Act, and the Mwongozo Code of Governance.

The petition also cites principles of accountability and public trust under Article 73.

“No gazette notice, no public board resolution, no recruitment advertisement, and no performance appraisal — just silence, and continued illegal occupancy,” states the petition filed by Okoth Elly & Company Advocates.

Sh200 million claim raised in petition

The petition also raises allegations involving claims that Kinoti allegedly boasted in private circles.

The petitioner claims Kinoti allegedly stated that he paid Ksh200 million to secure his position.

The petitioner further claims Kinoti said he received support from influential elders within the Njuri Ncheke Council.

He alleges that the support did not come from the President.

The allegations have not been proven in court.

The claims have attracted public attention due to questions surrounding public appointments.

“This isn’t just a case of a term gone stale — it’s symptomatic of a culture where public offices are traded like personal businesses,” a source close to the legal team said.

Petitioner accuses KURA Board and Transport Ministry of inaction

The petition accuses the KURA Board and the Ministry of Transport of failing to act.

Masambu claims the institutions have remained silent over Kinoti’s continued stay in office.

He argues that they have failed to initiate a proper reappointment process.

He also claims they have not conducted a competitive recruitment exercise.

The petitioner says the situation violates constitutional principles on leadership, integrity, accountability, and public service.

Court asked to remove Kinoti from office

The petition cites alleged violations of Articles 10, 73, 75, and 232 of the Constitution.

Masambu wants the court to declare Kinoti’s continued stay in office illegal.

He is also seeking an injunction to stop Kinoti from acting as Director General.

Additionally, he wants the court to order a fresh and merit-based recruitment process.

Case attracts public interest

The matter is expected to attract attention from civil society groups, Parliament, and the Office of the Auditor General.

A transport sector insider warned that failure to address the matter could create a dangerous precedent.

“If this goes unchallenged, it will set a dangerous precedent — where Directors General become life members, aided by silence and shadowy endorsements,” the insider said.

The petition is scheduled for urgent mention in early August.

If the court allows the petition, the case could have wider implications for accountability and governance within Kenya’s public institutions.

The Scholar-Businessman

Dr. A. Shem Grant arrived in Kenya with two doctorates tucked under his arm—Biochemistry for problem-solving, Religious Studies for purpose-finding. He rented a tiny room in Nairobi’s industrial quarter and launched Great Impress Kenya Ltd with barely enough cash for paper stock. Ten years later, the company’s branded billboards light up bank lobbies and NGO conferences across East Africa. But the real transformation happened inside the founder: science taught him how to build a balance sheet; faith reminded him that a balance sheet is never the finish line.

 The Factory of Hope
When Dr. Grant opened PACK & USE KENYA LIMITED, he refused to import “success” and export raw poverty. Instead, he placed the plant’s training centre at the edge of Kibera and hired mothers who had never stepped inside an industrial lab. Within months, sunflower seeds became body butter, shea kernels became payrolls, and shy beginners became confident artisans. Each jar of organic cream now carries two ingredients you won’t find on the label—dignity and disposable income—spreading through Nairobi’s streets faster than any fragrance.

The Voice That Survived Everything

A sudden financial collapse once stripped Dr. Grant of every asset except a spiral notebook. In that notebook, he sketched the manuscript for How to Conquer Depression in a Depressed World. The book outsold his former net worth and catapulted him onto university stages as the “Resilience Doctor.” Audiences don’t line up just to hear about failure turned to fortune; they come to watch a man who lost the visible world and gained an unshakable reason to rebuild it—one reader, one startup, one exhibition of African science at 

Algoa Bay in South Africa has been awarded the Whale Heritage Site accolade, making South Africa the only country in the world with two accredited sites.

Whale Heritage Sites are a global accreditation scheme developed by the World Cetacean Alliance and supported by World Animal Protection, that recognise a community´s commitment to respect and celebrate whales, dolphins and other cetaceans.

Algoa Bay joins four Whale Heritage Sites: Hervey Bay in Australia; Tenerife-La Gomera Marine area in Southwest Tenerife, Spain; Dana Point, California US, and the Bluff in Durban, South Africa.

With this accreditation, Algoa Bay will provide the travel industry with another way to identify and support sustainable sites and create a location for communities to celebrate marine culture, heritage and biodiversity.

Whale Heritage Site status also provides tourists with an easy way to select responsible whale and dolphin watching destinations; places where people can experience these magnificent animals in their natural habitat and in an authentic and respectful way.

“Nick Stewart, Global Head of Campaigns at World Animal Protection, said:

The accreditation of Algoa Bay as a new Whale Heritage Site is immensely important in the protection of wildlife in South Africa. It showcases a viable, sustainable alternative to cruel attractions like captive dolphin venues and other wildlife entertainment activities. The site will also help to spotlight tour operators who offer tourists a wonderful experience seeing whales and dolphins in the wild, where they belong, while protecting the welfare of marine wildlife.”

Lloyd Edwards, owner of Raggy Charters / The Baywatch Project, and

a member of the site´s Steering Committee, said: “Becoming a Whale Heritage Site will ensure that visitors to the Algoa Bay marine area are contributing to destinations that celebrate natural heritage, protect marine wildlife and build a connection between local residents and sea life. In addition to the opportunity to observe sea mammals in the ocean, to attend vibrant festivals and other events that celebrate the marine environment and provide education and inspiration for tourists and locals alike.”

Port Elizabeth, where Algoa Bay is located, is a hidden gem in South Africa for whale and dolphin watching, and other wildlife viewing. With seasonal visits from southern right whales, humpback whales and Indo-pacific humpback dolphins. They have the largest breeding colony of African penguins in the world. Other resident species include bottlenose dolphins, common dolphins, Bryde’s whales and Cape gannets.  

Edith Kabesiime, Wildlife Campaigns Manager at World Animal Protection said; “This interactive map shows wildlife trade routes globally and the dangers it has if not stopped. The African continent is home to some of the world’s most majestic and iconic wildlife. Sadly, it is also home to some of the world’s most cruel, dangerous, and exploitative wildlife trading. Some of the activities are criminal, others are legally authorized, but all are cruel.

Action is needed to end the global wildlife trade; to safeguard animal welfare, biodiversity, and to protect our health. We are urging people not to buy, own, or breed a wild animal for entertainment, for traditional Medicine or as an exotic pet. A life in captivity is a world away from a life in the wild.”

Every single day, thousands of wild animals are poached or farmed and sold into the global multi-billion-dollar wild animal trade with very little regard for their welfare. They are deprived what their natural habitat would offer for free such as freedom, space, wild interaction, and diet. Wildlife trade is now so substantial that it represents one of the most prominent drivers of animal extinction risk globally.

The demand and exploitation of wild animals not only affects biodiversity, it also exposes us to disease and puts us all at risk. Past occurrences have clearly demonstrated how the exploitation of wild animals’ primary caused the emergence and spread of zoonotic diseases like COVID-19, SARS, Ebola and MERS. Every day we learn more about the dangers of this trade, and how it is putting our own future at risk. We are at a biodiversity tipping point – we must act now before it is too late. Ending wildlife trade is the sure way to avert future catastrophes.

A joint scientific study by Blood Lions and World Animal Protection highlights how the captive lion breeding industry in South Africa poses real and serious health risks to thousands of tourists, industry workers and its communities.

“Five major diseases (dubbed The Sick 5 in our new campaign) have been identified that can inflict serious health issues for people”, says Dr Louise de Waal (Director of Blood Lions). “These diseases are associated with at least 63 potentially harmful pathogens linked with both wild and captive lions, as identified in our peer-reviewed paper.”

Underestimating the impact of such pathogens and the associated zoonotic diseases could lead to future epidemics with reductions in life expectancy, increased child and maternal death and serious socio-economic consequences.

The Sick 5 are Human Ehrlichiosis, Human Babesiosis, African Sleeping Sickness, Toxocariasis and Trichinosis.

The first two are tick-borne diseases, where the bacteria and parasite respectively are transmitted from animals to people by ticks. Toxocariasis and Trichinosis parasites are transmitted more directly to humans, the former for example by handling faeces contaminated soil and the latter has a direct animal-human transmission.

African Sleeping Sickness (or Trypanosomiasis) is caused by a parasite transmitted by the tsetse fly and is listed as a Neglected Tropical Disease by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Over the last century, this disease has caused several epidemics in Africa.

“This scientific paper should push relevant actors to closely examine current policies and practices associated with commercial lion farming. In South Africa, more than 8,000 lions are bred and kept on commercial farms for tourism activities, captive hunting, the bone trade and live exports. These wildlife farms can be a hot bed for diseases, especially when poor hygiene, poor diet, and other stresses associated with captivity weaken the animal’s immune system. We are at risk of potential disease outbreak if we don’t act urgently,” says Edith Kabesiime, Wildlife Campaigns Manager at World Animal Protection.

The welfare issues were highlighted as commonly occurring on South Africa’s commercial lion farms in a recent NSPCA report.

Furthermore, contagious diseases can spread rapidly when large numbers, and sometimes even different species, of wild animals are kept in the same enclosures, as this increases the risk of transmission.

Despite the large number of lions bred in captivity in South Africa and the long list of diseases found to affect them, the researchers did not find any scientific studies investigating health and diseases on commercial lion farms here in South Africa. Without this vital information it is impossible to effectively prevent, monitor or manage potential health risks on these farms, particularly considering this industry is poorly regulated and animal welfare enforcement lies with the National Council of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NSPCA) only.

“Our research identified substantial gaps in our knowledge base concerning the captive lion breeding industry in South Africa, which can have huge health implications for tourists interacting with lions, farm staff caring for the animals, taxidermists preparing the trophies, and slaughterhouse workers killing lions and preparing their skeletons”, says de Waal.

To avoid potential health risks and future pandemics, the Blood Lions “The Sick 5” campaign focuses on three major calls to action for members of the public and other entities:

1.      Asking the public to stop interacting with captive wildlife – an industry that has been condemned by global conservation authorities and leaders in the tourism sector.

2.      Urging the South African Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (DEFF) to set a zero CITES lion bone export quota.

3.      Calling for the World Health Organisation (WHO) to curb the global wildlife trade.

World Animal Protection has revealed that endangered African grey parrots and their body parts are being sold at ‘fetish’ voodoo markets in Togo, West Africa. They are sold to improve memory, or to protect against witchcraft, ignoring the potential threat for zoonotic disease spread from animals to humans. Full findings are provided in a new scientific paper published this week.

Shocking images show dead African grey parrots heads and feathers being sold for belief-based use, primarily voodoo, at West Africa’s largest traditional medicine or ‘fetish’ market. Known for their intelligence, the heads of these endangered birds are being sold to consumers with the belief they will improve memory or bring good luck. Their feathers are also being sold under the premise they will either help attract clients, bring love or help with divorce, and in some cases, their whole bodies are sold for protection against witchcraft.

It is estimated that up to 900 endangered African grey parrots have been traded at this market alone during the past 10 years, just one such market that are a common and widespread occurrence across West Africa. Voodoo is widely practiced in the region, and whilst much of the practices are harmless, there is a thriving domestic consumer demand for animal derivatives attached, which can have devastating impacts on wildlife.

This type of wildlife exploitation can further threaten the conservation of this endangered species, which has already seen wild population declines of up to 90% in some African countries. It can also cause immense suffering to the parrots involved during capture, transport, sale, and slaughter. Some of the cruel techniques used to capture African grey parrots for the exotic pet trade, which is likely to crossover with belief based use, have been documented through video footage previously released by World Animal Protection.

Experts are warning, that even though there are reasons to be optimistic with COVID-19 vaccines being rolled out, it’s important to consider that markets selling wildlife such as these around the world, pose risks of future disease outbreaks. Currently, avian influenza or bird flu is sweeping across India, which has caused severe economic ramifications with thousands of poultry birds being culled, and the situation is being closely monitored for its impact on human health which is a real concern, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). 

Edith Kabesiime, Wildlife Campaign Manager, World Animal Protection Africa, said:
“The dead parrots at this market would have experienced unthinkable cruelty, they are suffering and placing our health at risk. These highly intelligent, sociable birds that fly many miles each day and can sometimes live so long that they outlive their owners, are cruelly trapped, brutally handled, and slaughtered for their derivatives for unproven traditional medicines.

“What’s worse, is that untreated bird carcasses such as these, pose a serious health risk, as birds can carry numerous diseases. We must remember the lessons of the past and consider that COVID-19, SARS, Ebola, bird flu, swine flu, and many other zoonotic diseases all originated from animal exploitation, so this is a risky business.”

Last year, over a million people joined us and signed our petition calling on the G20 to end the global wildlife trade, forever. Now, World Animal Protection is continuing to put pressure on governments of all nations to make a collective commitment to end the inter-country trade in wild animals and wild animal products, and to ask for global institutions and bodies to put in place mechanisms to develop, facilitate and implement this ban. 

A businesswoman at Ngurubani, Kirinyaga county lost Sh200, 000 she intended to use in replenishing the stock of her rice business.

Jane Miano was heading to Makutano to buy bags of rice but that was not to be. She lost the money to fraudsters who tricked her.

She was waiting for matatu when a private car with three occupants approach her. Two of them were women.

They offered her a lift which she quickly accepted thinking they were godsent to save her the strains of matatu ride.

She said the two women engaged her in a hearty talk and in no time they became friends and she trusted them.

Before reaching Makutano they stopped at a shopping centre where they gave her Sh100 to buy water from a supermarket. She left her purse with the money in the car.

When she stepped out of the supermarket the fraudsters had fled with her money and other belongings.

She said she thought they were good people when they offered her a lift.

She reported the matter at Wang’uru police station. According to residents and police cases of fraudsters in Kirinyaga have been on the rise.

The officer who was in charge of Kamiti Medium Prison is now serving in the same capacity at Kerugoya GK Prison following a transfer caused by her disregard of rules set to help fight COVID-19 at Kamiti.

The Assistant Commissioner of Prisons (ACP) Jeniffer Muiga was in April involved in an altercation with her juniors manning the gate after she was instructed to sanitise and follow the COVID-19 directives.

She was driving to the prison late at night. She refused to heed the directives but her juniors stood their ground forcing her to comply but she threatened them with a disciplinary action.

That time Jeniffer was acting as the overall boss of Kamiti because the officer in charge ACP Charles Mutembei was away on a break.

When word went out about her plot other junior wardens vowed to stand with their colleagues and threatened to down their tools.

Stories were published about the incident forcing her to cow down but the Prisons Department embarrassed the altercation transferred her in what looks like a demotion.

“She was headed for the top job in Kamiti but she messed up. Her actions amounted to disrespecting the department and government. She was shocked by the transfer” a senior warden revealed.

She has been replaced by Senior Superintendent of Prisons (SSP) John Koech.

SSP Gerald Ongume who was the deputy officer in charge of Kamiti Maximum Prison was transferred to Nairobi Medium Prison and appointed the officer in-charge.

Ongume’s position at Kamiti Maximum Prison was given to SSP Joseph Longoriangyang who was transferred from Nanyuki Prison where he was the officer in-charge.