Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinnet yesterday ordered the arrest of anyone setting foot on Loresho land reserved for expansion of a water reservoir.
This is after the national government repossessed the grabbed land in Loresho that contains the reservoir serving Spring Valley and Loresho.
The repossession was sanctioned by President Uhuru Kenyatta when he issued a circular on Sunday afternoon.
The President directed that the problem be resolved by Boinnet, National Land Commission chairman Muhammad Swazuri , Director of Criminal Investigations Ndegwa Muhoro, EACC chief executive Halakhe Waqo and deputy Michael Mubea.
The team was led to the four acres by Nairobi Senator Mike Sonko.
Boinnet said the land will be guarded by police and no construction should go on.
The land has been subdivided into nine parcels by groups who claim ownership. Loresho Residents Association chairman Richard Njoba said an acre has been hived off by Shital Bhandari, who was putting up a shopping mall.
Sonko and Westlands MP Timothy Wanyonyi on Friday obtained court orders blocking the developers from taking over the land.
Speaking at the scene, Boinnet said the mandate of the police is to protect public utilities.
Police will not be used to protect grabbers, Boinnet said.
Last year officers guarding the land sent away Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission officers.
Muhoro said the CID will investigate the case of different Nairobi county officers approving constructions and colluding with the grabber.
Swazuri said the NLC has revoked all the title deeds belonging to the grabbers and the land now belongs to the Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company.
As the officers were still at the site, area youth demolished the remaining structures put up by the developer.
The youth carried away bags of cement, mabati sheets and other construction materials.
Earlier, the CID director said the water reservoir should be guarded by police.
“You never know the intentions of the grabber. Why would you grab a public water reservoir and send away all the Nairobi water workers? You must have ill intentions,” Muhoro said.
His comments were supported by Sonko, who asked Boinnet to probe Bhandari’s intentions.
“On Jamhuri Day he started building. The man thinks everybody has gone on holiday but we will not allow this. He should compensate the county government of Nairobi,” Sonko said.
