This archive report was first published on 2 December 2019.
On December 1, 2019, squatters in Lower Solai, Nakuru County, were living in fear after receiving threats from a group of youths who were planning to evict them from their land.
The squatters, who have been living on the land for 40 years, were reacting to a court ruling that nullified 3,000 title deeds held by families that had illegally resettled on the 8,000-acre land in Ol Jorai belonging to Solai Ruyobei Farm Limited.
According to Charles Chebet, the squatters' chairman, the group of youths had been threatening to evict them, and some of the squatters had already been forced to leave their homes.
"We have been living as squatters in Lower Solai for 40 years. This week we have been living in fear after threats from an organised group of youths threatening to evict us," said Chebet.
However, the squatters were relieved by the court ruling, which they saw as a reprieve after over four decades of legal battles to repossess the land.
"It has been a challenging journey and we hope the ruling will not land us into bloodshed. We call on security agencies to tame them the gang," said Chebet.
Some of the squatters, like Peter Kiloo, had already fallen victim to the gang's actions. Kiloo reported that the gang had driven animals into his farm, leaving a trail of destruction and threatening to take unspecified action against him.
"I had fenced off a portion of the land I have been living on with barbed wire. The youths brought down the fence and had their animals graze on my farm. They destroyed maize worth at least Sh50,000 as I watched," said Kiloo.
Despite the threats, Solai Chief Mark Mogotio said he was not aware of the situation and promised to follow up.
