More than 130 residents of Chandavai in Lamu County have moved to court seeking to stop what they describe as the unlawful takeover of land their families have occupied and cultivated for generations.
The 133 plaintiffs have sued the Office of the President, the Defence Cabinet Secretary, the State Department for Lands and Physical Planning, the Attorney General, the National Land Commission, LAPSSET, the Lamu County Government, Dangote Industries and two companies named in the court papers as contractors.
The residents claim they have occupied and developed portions of land comprised in or forming part of LR No. 13061 in Chandavai without formal title deeds. They say the land has been used for farming and livestock keeping, with families also putting up homes, mosques and shrines and burying relatives there.
They contend that the land is community land under the stewardship of the Lamu County Government and that their long-standing occupation gives them interests that should be recognised and compensated.
The residents allege that on August 7, 2024, government and LAPSSET agents entered the disputed land with bulldozers and other heavy machinery, destroying crops, trees and other property.
According to the plaint, local administrators later told residents that the land had been acquired for the LAPSSET project before being allocated to the Ministry of Defence for infrastructure works around Manda Bay.
The plaintiffs say the works included road construction and expansion of facilities around the Kenya Navy Base, US Camp Simba and Magogoni Airfield. Some residents claim they were promised compensation for destroyed crops and other losses, while some families were forced to move into rented accommodation.
The dispute has now intensified with preparations for the proposed Dangote refinery in Lamu.
The residents allege that soil testing and other preparatory activities linked to the project began in July 2026. They further claim that on September 10, police officers, chiefs and other government agents cleared one of the disputed parcels and told them it would be used for the refinery's September 30 groundbreaking ceremony.
The refinery is planned within the LAPSSET special economic zone in Lamu, with heavy construction machinery having arrived at the Port of Lamu ahead of the project launch.
The plaintiffs say the developments could displace them without a resettlement plan or compensation. They also claim they learnt around September 20 that the government had begun a compulsory acquisition process involving land in Lamu.
They allege the process could compensate absentee landowners while leaving out residents who have occupied and used the land for generations.
The residents argue that the absence of registered title deeds does not extinguish their interests or their right to compensation. They rely on Article 40(4) of the Constitution and provisions of the Land Act governing compulsory acquisition.
They accuse the defendants of failing to issue required notices, identify all persons with interests in the land, conduct valuations and inquiries and provide compensation before taking possession.
The plaintiffs also allege inadequate public participation and breaches of their rights to property, fair administrative action and access to information. They have further raised environmental concerns, claiming that the developments have not complied with applicable environmental assessment requirements.
The residents want the court to stop further construction and excavation, arguing that continued works could destroy homes, graves, trees, crops and other property before their claimed interests are determined.
The case comes as major infrastructure and industrial projects continue to reshape land use in Lamu, putting the residents' long-standing occupation claims against planned LAPSSET, military and refinery developments.
