Nairobi News

A company associated with ODM leader Raila Odinga is planning to construct a luxury hotel in Malindi, Kilifi County, on a piece of land whose ownership was previously contested.

According to documents obtained by the Nation, Kango Enterprises Limited, where Mr Odinga is listed as one of the directors, plans to implement the project on approximately 4.3 acres of land.

It will be built about 100 metres from the shoreline. An environmental impact assessment report that was submitted to the National Environmental Management Authority in June shows that the hotel will be constructed at an estimated cost of Sh515,760,000.

“The proposed establishment will be located within Mayungu locality, which is a famous tourism destination,” states the report.

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Kango Enterprises had been in engaged in legal battles against British citizen John Presser Unsworth (now deceased) over the land’s ownership.

In 2011, Mr Odinga was in the dock at Malindi High Court where he testified that he bought the land from former Malindi mayor Frederic Kazungu Diwani.

The court was informed that Mr Diwani fraudulently sold the same land to Mr Unsworth.

Mr Diwani admitted the offense and was fined Sh800,000 in 2009. On August 5, 2022, judgment was entered in favour of the company, requiring Unsworth’s kin to vacate the land. On June 9, a Gazette notice was published notifying the public that a new title deed would be issued to KangoEnterprises.

The proposed hotel’s architectural designs indicate plans for an exotic tourism destination complete with a jetty to facilitate sea excursions.

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A two-story block of the hotel and conference hall will occupy the largest piece of the land. On the first floor of the block will be 33 hotel rooms, spa, jacuzzi, sauna and steam rooms.

A presidential suite and 19 more rooms will be built on the second floor, while the conference hall and other service rooms and offices will be on the ground floor.

The other two-storey buildings in the plan are six blocks of two-bedroom and three-bedroom villas.

The company also plans to construct a standalone presidential villa. The villa will have three bedrooms, a lounge, dining room, kitchen and gazebo, among other amenities.

“The proposed hotel project is considered to be beneficial as it will improve hotel infrastructure for the area, create employment opportunities, promote businesses, provide income to the proponent, and will be a source of revenue to the government,” the report to Nema says.

It also identifies a number of negative environmental and social impacts such as loss of vegetation cover, solid waste generation and management and increased water and energy demand, among others. The report outlines proposed mitigation measures during the project’s entire cycle.

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