AIRPORT View Housing Ltd, the company embroiled in a land tussle with the Lang’ata Road Primary School, has withdrawn a case it lodged against Nairobi county government.
The company yesterday told High Court judge Mary Gitumbi that it no longer wishes to pursue the trespass case it lodged against the county government.
The company, however, did not give reasons that brought about the change of mind to terminate the case.
The bid by Airport View Housing to drop the case was opposed by a second investor, Vinemag Enterprises, which laid claim to the same piece of land.
Vinemag objected to the withdrawal of case, saying the plea by Airport View Housing is made in bad faith and meant to defeat justice.
The judge ruled in favour of Airport View Housing and marked the case as withdrawn.
Justice Gitumbi ordered Airport View Housing to pay the county government cost of filing the case.
In the case Airport View Housing wanted a declaration from the county government that the land in dispute belongs to them.
The county government insisted the land was county property.
Yesterday’s decision means that the case by Vinemag is also dead.
In its suit papers, Vinemag had said it struck a deal with Airport View Housing to buy the land for Sh140 million.
The company told the court that it intends to lodge an official claim for the land that the Lang’ata school pupils have been using as a playground.
Byron Okello, a director of Vinemag, says he was given the go-ahead by land authorities and City Hall to complete the sale agreement with Airport View Housing.
The only thing that stalled its plans to buy the land is the dispute between Airport View Housing and the school.
Airport View had indicated that Vinemag was to construct a mall on the disputed land before it was stopped in the wake of protests by Lang’ata Road pupils, teachers and parents.
National Land Commission chairman Muhammad Swazuri has said preliminary investigations show the land belongs to the school.
He promised to review all land ownership documents given to individuals to verify their authenticity.
“The school was allocated the land in 1972. The Airport View Housing company acquired their title deed in 1995. We will summon Airport View directors to come and explain how they acquired the title deed,” Swazuri said.
