Court Okays Demolition of Grand Manor Hotel in Gigiri for Posing Security Risk to UN Offices, US Embassy

The Appeals Court has okayed the demolition of the multi-million-shilling Grand Manor Hotel in Nairobi's upmarket area of Gigiri.

The hotel’s proprietor, tycoon Praful Kumar had moved to court in January this year to stop the County Government of Nairobi from bringing down the property.

Governor Mike Sonko's administration had begun destroying the five-star hotel over claims that it was constructed without necessary approvals and poses a security threat to nearby United Nations offices, United States Embassy among foreign others. 

On Tuesday, Appellate Court Justices Mohamed Warsame, Daniel Musinga, and Prof Otieno Odek ruled that the hotel is a security threat to the adjacent United Nations offices.

Foreign missions had in the past written to Nairobi County and the Foreign Affairs ministry to protest its construction. The hotel stands opposite the US Embassy on one side, the UN offices on the other side while the High Commission of Botswana is on the left and the Embassy of Morocco on the right.

Gigiri Village Association had also filed a complaint in 2015, saying construction of a commercial structure in the area violated physical planning regulations for the low-density estate.

In August last year, Kumar was arrested by Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) detectives in Kilifi County after he reportedly attempted to offer Governor Sonko a bribe of Sh5 million to dissuade him from flattening the property. 

He was arraigned in court where he denied three counts of bribery and was freed on Sh1 million bond.