Tribunal blocks Nairobi County from acquiring Jamia Mosque land

A tribunal has cancelled government plans to compulsorily acquire land valued at Sh3.9 billion belonging to Jamia Mosque near the Globe Cinema Roundabout, ruling the process was mismanaged and never completed.

The Land Acquisition Tribunal found that the acquisition process, started by the now-defunct Nairobi Metropolitan Services (NMS), was mishandled by both the National Land Commission (NLC) and the Nairobi county government.

The tribunal, chaired by Dr Nabil Orina and George Supeyo, said the incomplete process blocked the mosque from using its property.

"An order be and is hereby issued quashing Gazette Notices No. 5402 and 10279 of 2021, 207 and 15995 of 2022 and 641 of 2023 to the extent that they purported to compulsorily acquire land known as L.R. No 209/136/259," the tribunal said.

It ruled that the move violated the rights of the mosque’s trustees, who are the registered owners of the land under the name Jamie Masjid, Ahle Sunait Wal Jamai.

The land was earmarked for a public transport terminal, but NMS’s term ended before the plan was finalised.

Functions of NMS were later returned to the county government, leaving the land acquisition process in limbo.

Although the trustees sought compensation of Sh3.9 billion, the tribunal declined the request, saying the compulsory acquisition was not completed.

"We find that the compulsory acquisition over the claimant’s property is yet to be completed to warrant the claim for compensation," Dr Orina said.

The NLC admitted that it had started the process in 2021 and published gazette notices about the planned acquisition, but said this alone did not stop the owners from using the land.

It argued that the claim was "speculative, premature and not founded in law."

The county government also opposed the acquisition, saying the request by NMS was unlawful.

Lawyer Titus Koceyo argued that it lacked proper approval since it did not come from the county executive committee member in charge of lands.

The trustees said the lack of communication from NLC and the county government created uncertainty and blocked potential opportunities, infringing on their property rights.