This archive report was first published on 15 December 2019.
December 15, 2019, marked a significant day for Ms. Susan Ngina Kanyila, an elderly woman from Kajiado County, as she found herself at the center of a land dispute with Pastor James Ng'ang'a's Neno Evangelism Centre.
The church, through Mr. Joseph Muriithi Mborothi, had allegedly encroached on Ms. Kanyila's land in 2013 and started building a church structure, despite the land belonging to her.
Ms. Kanyila, who was given the land as a squatter by the government in the 1970s, had lived on the land since 1976. However, she was shocked when a group of people invaded her land and started building the church.
After a County Lands Board meeting in January 2016, the board wrote a letter to Neno Evangelism Centre asking it to restrain from any further development on the property. However, the church continued to develop the land, much to Ms. Kanyila's dismay.
Ms. Kanyila has accused her neighbor, Mr. Muriithi Mborothi, of conspiring with the church to rob her of her land. She has also accused the area chief, Mr. Mohammed Dida, of working behind the scenes with the church to see her lose the land.
Ms. Kanyila fears for her life, claiming that strangers with unknown intentions have been trespassing into the land. She has reported the matter to the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission and is seeking justice.
