This archive report was first published on 28 September 2019.
On September 28, 2019, a scandal involving Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu came to light after he admitted to illegally transferring a widow's Sh100 million land to another person.
The land in question belonged to Ms. Cecilia Mbugua, a widow who had been seeking to develop it since 2013. However, Governor Waititu's office intervened, and the land was transferred to Ms. Esther Nyatu without Mbugua's knowledge or consent.
According to an investigation carried out by the Commission on Administrative Justice (CAJ), Governor Waititu used his power to facilitate the transfer of the land, which was valued at Sh100 million. The investigation found that the transfer was fraudulent and that Waititu had provided all the required documents to the land registrar.
CAJ Chairperson Florence Kajuju stated, 'We will hand over our report to the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Directorate of Criminal Investigations. We are not allowed to prosecute. We follow our investigations and if we find a criminal element then we forward the same to the relevant offices.'
Ms. Mbugua's land woes began in 2013 when she sought Kiambu County's approval to develop it. The approval was granted but was later revoked on allegations that the land belonged to a Jua Kali association. Mbugua went to court and won the case, but Governor Waititu's office later summoned her and issued an ultimatum to surrender two of her five plots or never get the county's approval to develop them.
