April 24, 2013
More than 100 residents of Kawala in Mumoni district on Monday staged a sit in at the Mwingi law court premises protesting an order issued by the court to evict some of them.
The group, that included uniformed school children, brought with them a memorandum addressed to Chief Justice Willy Mutunga.
Carrying cardboard placards, the peaceful group arrived at the court at around 8 am and sat pensively as they sought audience with Mwingi acting senior principal magistrate Hezron Nyaberi.
Some of the placards they carried read; “30 years of mateso (suffering). Help use retain our land” and “we want our land back.”
They were aggrieved by an order issued by Nyaberi last week where he directed that six families living in the contentious Mbeu Group Ranch land be evicted for illegal occupation.
Their spokesman Mwinzi Muli said though the order targed six families, they had a come as a group to offer solidarity to those affected since this “is the first step to mass evictions from the land”.
“It is unfair for the court to have ruled that the land belonged to Mbeu ranch members thus making its original occupants become squatters,” he said.
He said the sit-in was aimed at having Nyaberi overturn the eviction order and if he proved difficult, then they would seek the indulgence of CJ Mutunga.
However, Nyaberi was away on leave and the court’s executive officer Stephen Kilei prevailed on them to leave and sent representatives to meet with Nyaberi next week.
The group left at around 1.30 pm but gave Kilei their memorandum to the CJ.
Source: All Africa
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