The High Court has ordered the government to pay former Taita-Taveta MP Basil Criticos Ksh.30 million for violating his constitutional right to property.
The court found that Criticos had been deprived of his rights under Article 40 of the Constitution, which guarantees property protection.
He was awarded Ksh.20 million in general damages and Ksh.10 million in exemplary and aggravated damages.
Criticos told the court that between 1998 and 2000, thousands of people invaded his sisal estates, but state officials did not remove them despite repeated requests.
He said that after protesting the invasions, he was dismissed as Assistant Minister for Roads and Public Works. His sisal factory and 4,400 acres of land were burned between 1998 and 1999, causing major losses.
About 1,600 employees lost their jobs, and thousands of casual workers became destitute. Criticos said he was forced to flee the county.
He also explained that in 1991, he had sold 23,400 acres to the Settlement Fund Trustees for resettling squatters, but the State failed to move them there.
Instead, state agencies allegedly helped the squatters occupy his land by providing electricity, roads, water pipelines, and canal rehabilitation through development projects.
Previous court orders from 2005 and 2006 that required removal of installations on his land were ignored, and police did not act even after receiving lists of squatters.
The court found that these actions and omissions infringed Criticos’ constitutional right to property and violated court orders.
He had sought Ksh.100 million in compensation, saying that the government’s actions made him unable to repay a Ksh.100 million loan linked to subdivided land.
He also requested that the Government Valuer carry out a valuation of his land, as he could not afford it privately.
The court explained that constitutional remedies are mainly meant to affirm rights and prevent future violations, rather than punish.
While it did not grant the full Ksh.100 million, it ruled that Ksh.20 million in general damages and Ksh.10 million in exemplary damages were appropriate.
The respondents did not respond to the petition, file affidavits, or give reasons for their actions, and the court said this failure was equivalent to admitting the facts presented by Criticos.
