Lamu residents whose land had been earmarked for a Sh21 billion wind power plant plan to sue the county assembly for nullifying the project.
They say their MCAs acted with malice and their decision was uncalled for.
More than 600 landowners had been listed for compensation running into millions for each individual after more than 3,206 acres were acquired for the project in 2016. An acre was valued at Sh800,000.
But in July this year, the county assembly unanimously voted to nullify the project, citing failure by the investor to meet compensation demands, among other conditions.
The project is sited in the Baharini area of Mpeketoni, Lamu West. It is to be carried out by Baharini Wind Power, a consortium of Belgian firm Elicio Company and Kenyan firm Kenwind Holdings Limited Company. It was expected to generate about 90MW of power once ready.
The initial project plan includes up to 38 turbines and 90MW capacity to be constructed in Baharini village — about 40km from the new Lamu Port South Sudan Ethiopia Transport (Lapsset) project in Kililana, Lamu West.
The landowners say its nullification was malicious and threw the entire compensation plans into confusion. They have been waiting for payouts but the decision now makes payment impossible.
Addressing journalists in Baharini on Tuesday, the landowners said they had initiated a signature-collection drive after which they will petition court for a hearing of their grievances.
Their spokesperson Linus Gachohi said they intend to collect at least 5,000 signatures before proceeding to court. They say the move by MCAs was selfish and will further delay their compensation package.
“The decision taken by the MCAs is something that shocked us all and more so because we were almost receiving our compensation. They don’t understand that we are largely affected and we really need that money. We are going to court to challenge their decision,” Gachoki said.
They dismissed MCAs' claims that part of the reason for the nullification was the investor's failure to pay them, adding that they had never had issues with the investors.
“How do they claim to nullify a project because a certain party is not being treated well without asking? We have never had issues with the investor and we are shocked that our MCAs can fabricate such lies just so they can get away with something. It's unsettling that our own leaders can do that to us without even asking," Gachoki said.
The project had to overcome numerous court battles before it was finally approved. On March 7, the Court of Appeal in Mombasa dismissed an appeal by US-based firm Codison International after establishing that it lacked merit in its demand to be allowed to establish the project in Baharini.
The court allowed the Baharini Wind Power Project to continue with implementation. That same month, the Kenya Power and Lighting Company signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with the wind power plant, a move that signified the project's viability.