This archive report was first published on 11 December 2019.
The Moi family, led by retired president Daniel arap Moi's son Gedion Moi, has been ordered to vacate the Kiptagich Tea Estate land in Kericho county.
The land, which was annexed by the Moi family in 1978, is part of the Mau Forest Complex and is one of those owned by power barons in Kenya that need to be repossessed before the year ends.
According to documents seen by Weekly Citizen, the estate is located inside the Mau forest and is one of the 417,973 total blocks in the forest.
Environment cabinet secretary Keriako Tobiko is coordinating the eviction process, which has been accused of sparing power barons illegally occupying public forest land.
It is reported that the Moi family has decided to vacate the land and avoid running to court to stop the eviction, with the state not wanting to be seen as playing double standards in the Mau eviction plan.
Already, panic has gripped the land cartel that was involved in the subdivision of Mau forest land after word leaked that Directorate of Criminal Investigations boss George Kinoti is set to arrest and charge top government officials who were behind the syndicate of issuing title deeds to squatters.
Others who have been implicated in the authorisation of the land transactions include officials of group ranches that recruited members and allocated them land with the help of local officials of land control board.
Documents in the Lands ministry under cabinet secretary Farida Karoney show that Moi's Kiptagich land is located inside the Mau forest, with the state ruling out compensation to the affected persons since they are criminals and need to be arrested.
