KEVEVAPI officials found themselves under sharp scrutiny as lawmakers pushed for answers over the long-running dispute involving the loss and subdivision of land belonging to the state agency.
The Public Investments Committee on Social Services, Administration, and Agriculture began a fresh and intensive inquiry after learning that large sections of KEVEVAPI’s land had been transferred to private developers through questionable processes carried out over many years.
During the meeting led by Vice-Chairperson Caleb Amisi, Managing Director Alex Sabuni and his senior team were asked to explain audit gaps and land records that show major inconsistencies.
The committee was told that KEVEVAPI originally held 93.3 hectares, but in 1994 a former managing director allegedly sought to divide the land into nine parcels without getting permission from the National Treasury or the parent ministry.
These parcels were later taken over by private developers and had not been recovered by mid-2017.Members also noted worrying patterns at the institute’s Embakasi property.
The land, initially 93.02 hectares, has slowly reduced to 77.7 hectares, then 45.2 hectares, and now only 29.05 hectares remain. Legislators described the repeated losses as a carefully planned scheme that took place over decades.
Hon. Owino stated that the matter clearly pointed to abuse of office and insisted that the board must take responsibility.
However, Sabuni maintained that KEVEVAPI had never approved any subdivision or disposal of its land, adding that the board did not give authority to any managing director to make such decisions.
He explained that multiple complaints had been filed with the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission and several court cases launched based on findings from the Ndung’u Commission Report.
Sabuni also revealed that the original title deed had been handed to Kenya Commercial Bank as collateral for a loan but was never used to clear the debt.
KEVEVAPI is still fighting four court cases over the remaining land and has already won three of them.
Lawmakers directed the agency to produce a full historical record of all actions taken on the land, stressing that the investigation will identify and hold accountable anyone involved in grabbing public property.
