Uchumi Supermarkets CEO Mohamed Mohamed secured a major victory in mid-May 2019 when Jittery and impatient suppliers agreed to give his team time to implement the retailer’s Company Voluntary Agreement (CVA). The decision was made at the creditors’ meeting held in Nairobi.
The CVA, prepared by the Uchumi Supermarkets team and external consultants including financial consultants Mazars, InVhestia, and law firm Kieti and Associates. Owen Koimburi, the retailer’s Insolvency Practitioner, then filed it in court.
Additionally, the CVA was padded with credibility and confidence with the appointment of Kimani Rugendo, who would represent the interests of manufacturers and suppliers. Rugendo, the founder of Kevian Industries, is better known for his company’s food brands including Afya Juice and Pick N Peel.
On paper, everything seemed set for success. But the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) had other plans. As Uchumi Supermarket’s stakeholders were preparing for the windfall of KES 2.8 Billion they were expecting from the sale of 20 acres in the Roysambu area (Kasarani sub-county) the soldiers encroached the land earlier, erected fences, and placed tanks. As one insider quipped, the land was invaded by squatters with guns.
This was a big setback and it was even more complicated.
Months earlier Uchumi Supermarkets had made progress on selling the land. Around September 2018 Jesus Winner Ministry, a popular Church led by Edwin Mwai, a charismatic preacher with significant political connections, agreed to acquire the land.
Jesus Winner Ministry through Jewel Complex Ltd entered into a sale agreement with Kasarani Mall Ltd, Uchumi Supermarket’s subsidiary, to purchase three acres out of the 20 acres.
Jesus Winner Ministry paid Ksh450 million for the purchase, partly financed through a Ksh270 million loan from Equity Bank.
Over the next few years, the land became entangled in legal and political disputes. Parliament’s Committee on Lands, and the National Lands Commission got involved after a group claiming to be the original occupants of the parcel came to claim ownership. The group’s claim was that they worked for Mayer Jacob Samuel, the original owner of the land who held a 99 years lease that was valid between 1904 and 2003. Parliament found their claims as baseless.
For Uchumi Supermarkets, things were about to get tricky because it seemed the KDF’s ravenous appetite for the retailer’s land could not be satisfied.
In May 2021, a gazette notice from the National Land Commission on behalf of the Ministry of Defense gave notice of the government’s intention to compulsorily acquire Uchumi Supermarkets Plc’s other land that is in the Langata part of Nairobi County. The parcel is 1.49 hectares.
KDF wanted the land because it was strategically located near Uhuru Gardens where the army was putting up a National Monument and Museum celebrating Kenya’s independence.
While these events unfolded, Pastor Mwai remained determined to acquire the three acres in Roysambu for a mega-church, expanding their facilities next to Thika Road Mall.
The man of the cloth began to earnestly lobby, including executing a well-orchestrated public relations campaign that aimed at affirming his church’s property rights.
His efforts began in earnest in May 2022 when he held a news conference where he laid out details of the sale agreement and his efforts to get the then Trade Principal Secretary Amb. Johnson Weru to act on the urgent issue which had proved futile.
Pastor Mwai was direct. His church either gets the land or a refund with an interest rate of 24%.
It seemed to work because the military allowed Jesus Winners Ministry to get its three acres.
However, the timing was less than ideal, as the country was gearing up for the August 2022 General Elections. As is customary, government operations ground to a halt.
But following the victory of William Ruto as Kenya’s fifth president Mwai’s fortunes would change. The preacher was instrumental in marshaling his support base to support William Ruto’s bid and it was just a matter of time before he would get access to the church’s land.
On Sunday, March 2, 2025, Pastor Mwai would get his land. At a service at his Roysambu chapel President William Ruto flexed his constitutional powers as the commander-in-chief and ordered the KDF to give the church access to its three acres.
What next for Uchumi? In the last and final part, we will consider options for the once mighty retail giant.
Related Content: The Fall Of Uchumi Supermarket: Deals, Disputes, And A Billion-Shilling Battleground
