The ongoing dispute between Labour and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary (CS) Florence Bore and Gatanga MP Edward Muriu over the ownership of a property has taken a new twist as they have given conflicting statements about the matter.
The conflict emerged on Saturday morning when MP Muriu accused CS Bore of forcefully occupying a house he intended to sell at Amara Ridge.
Mary Muriu, the owner of the house, alleged that CS Bore had offered Ksh.90 million for the property, while she and her husband had maintained a final asking price of Ksh.120 million.
Responding to the accusations on Sunday, CS Bore refuted MP Muriu’s claims, stating that she had signed her portion of the sale agreement and had submitted it to the MP’s lawyers for their signatures.
She further explained that she had paid 10 percent of the agreed-upon amount, justifying her occupation of the property, with the remaining balance intended to be settled within 90 days.
“In compliance with the respective clauses of the agreement, I sourced a 10 percent deposit from my Sacco and paid directly to the Vendor’s lawyers’ account via RTGS,” part of her response read.
“We agreed that I take occupation of the house while I sought a mortgage facility for the balance, which I legitimately expected to obtain within the agreed transaction period of 90 days.”
CS Bore asserted that MP Muriu breached the agreement by attempting to evict her children from the property a mere 30 days after the agreement was made.
“Unfortunately, within less than 30 days of the agreement, Hon. Edward Muriu and his wife attempted to unlawfully evict my children from the house while I was out of the country. They were accompanied by armed goons, necessitating the need for police presence on the premises,” she explained.
CS Bore dismissed the allegations as fabrications aimed at dissolving the agreement on the pretext of finding a “better deal.”
“The transaction was a private engagement between a willing seller and a willing buyer, both parties duly represented by lawyers in total conformity with the law. The media pitch was therefore unwarranted and ancillary to the transaction.”
Responding swiftly, MP Muriu claimed that CS Bore was leveraging her position to unlawfully occupy his property.
“CS Bore is using her position as CS to criminally occupy my house and use police force to continue with occupation. It’s a criminal use of state force and abuse of office, contrary to Chapter 6 of Our Constitution,” his statement read.
MP Muriu vehemently denied the existence of a sale agreement and challenged CS Bore to present the statement she was alluding to.
“I have never signed a sale agreement with CS Bore, and if she has one, let her produce it. The deposit is paid after signing the sale agreement. Let her provide the payment receipt,” he stated.
“A signed sale agreement expresses the meeting of the minds of both the seller and the buyer, and in its absence, any expressions outside the same fall into the abyss.”
Additionally, MP Muriu emphasized that he still possesses all the keys to the house, raising further questions about how CS Bore gained access to the property.
“On June 14th, our staff discovered the house occupied when they arrived to clean and maintain the property. I still hold all the keys to the house. CS Bore has never called or even texted me since she occupied the house,” he revealed.
Consequently, the Gatanga MP demanded that CS Bore vacate the property, asserting that no money has been exchanged, and he has no intention of selling the property.
“I am not in possession of any money and I am not selling the house,” he said.
