“Wachira Kirira Defence Committee” Set Up In Stockholm
A Committee has been set up in Stockholm to fight for the recovery of a piece of land that was grabbed from Mr. George Wachira Kirira by Mr. Joe Maina Ruthithi in Kenya who seized the land using government help due debt Wachira allegedly owed Ruthithi.
The land grabbing which attracted media attention in Kenya was bizarre because Wachira lost his land as a result of his failure to pay Mr. Ruthithi a fine of Ksh 80,000 awarded to Mr. Ruthithi by a court in 1982 following an assault case which Wachira lost. At the time Wachira was rendered homeless, his land was worth Ksh 4 million while the original amount had accrued interest totaling Ksh 240,000.
Setting up the Wachira Defence Committee in Stockholm, Mr. Martin Ngatia, one of the initiative takers, said that it has become necessary to set up the Committee because the struggle to recover the land may take a long time depending on how authorities in Kenya reacted.
The Committee intends to dramatize Wachira’s case at home and abroad and has called on Kenyans and other people of good will to support the struggle against land grabbing in Kenya. Other members of the Committee are Mrs Hellen Opwapo, Mr. Daniel Mwaura and Mrs Grace Nyambura. A Bank account has been opened by the Committee in Sweden to facilitate fund raising to help Wachira recover his land. The account will soon be made public.
Mr. Ngatia told KSB that what has happened to Wachira is gross injustice which should not be happening to any Kenyan at a time when Kenya is being led by a Coalition government that vowed to fight injustice and land grabbing.
An impromptu fund raising that was organized in Stockholm to raise cash to help Wachira cope with life after his house was demolished and his family thrown in the cold realized Ksh 64,000 that was sent to Wachira via Western Union. Mr. Wachira thanked Kenyans and friends who had come together to raise funds on his behalf.
Wachira has since hired a lawyer who has taken up the case. A hearing on the case is expected today, Monday 24th August in Nairobi. In the case, Wachira will argue that the seizure of his land by Ruthithi was illegal.
The Committee intends to get in touch with the Office of Prime Minister, Office of President, Minister of Lands and Settlement, Wachira’s MP, Human Rights organizations and any other groups that could help in the recovery of Mr. Wachira’s land.
The Committee resolved to set up a blog site that will be used to spread information about the Wachira campaign and to sensitize the public about Wachira’s predicament.
Okoth Osewe
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