BY SAM ALFAN.
An investment firm has moved to court seeking to restrain Kileleshwa Member of County Assembly (MCA) Robert Alai from occupying, leasing, or carrying out any construction on its Runda property.
Cancer Investments Limited wants in a suit filed before the Environment and Land court a temporary injunction barring Alai and his agents from trespassing, or undertaking any action that would interfere with the company’s quiet enjoyment and lawful occupation of the land.
Through lawyer Harrison Kinyanjui, the company is also seeking an order directing the Officer Commanding Station (OCS) at Gigiri Police Station to enforce and oversee compliance with any court orders issued in the matter.
According to Kinyanjui, the company was the lawful owner of the disputed parcel.
He submitted that the company was at risk of being unlawfully dispossessed of the property due to the actions of Alai and individuals he allegedly invited—described as “goons and vagabonds”—who are attempting to illegally seize the land in violation of the Land Act and Article 40 of the Constitution.
The lawyer told the court that Cancer Investments purchased the property from Transnational Bank of Kenya on 13th January 1992.
Since then, the company has retained possession of the land.
Recently, while preparing for renovations, the company allowed workmen on-site to carry out repairs pending submission of planning documents for approval by the Nairobi City County Government.
The court was informed that the company has consistently paid all utility bills levied by service providers, including Runda Water Limited and electricity suppliers.
They promised to provide proof of the payments during trial.
The company also stated that it has never entered into any transaction involving the property with Alai or any other party.
The firm said it had not offered the property as collateral nor relinquished the original title deed, which remains with Diamond Trust Bank of Kenya.
“The bank holds the title under a registered Second Further Charge dated 22nd December 2011, which remains active,” Kinyanjui said.
He said due to the presence of this charge and the bank’s custody of the original title, there has been no valid transfer or registration of any interest in the property since that date.
Any such transfer would require a discharge of charge from the bank, which has not occurred, Kinyanjui added.
It further stated that neither the company nor its directors have, by action or omission, invited or permitted Alai to enter, occupy, or construct on the land. In the absence of a written agreement in compliance with Section 3(3) of the Law of Contract Act.
The court was told that on 31st March 2025, Alai, believing the property to be vacant, forcibly entered it with others, allegedly intending to facilitate further trespass. The company’s director, who had gone to the site, confronted Alai and his group. During the confrontation, Alai’s alleged associates—armed with crude weapons—broke the gate’s padlock, physically assaulted the director, and injured him.
The company reported the incident to the Runda Police Station under OB No. 31/3/2025, stating that the invasion was unauthorized and that Alai had orchestrated the intrusion.
Alai’s group is said to have demolished a concrete pillar supporting the gate to gain entry into the compound. Police officers dispatched from Runda Police Station to manage the situation were reportedly met with resistance from Alai’s associates.
The court heard that they subsequently barred the company director from accessing the property.
