Waititu’s Ruai land up for auction over Sh40m loan

A micro-lender has put up for sale yet another property belonging to former Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu over non-payment of a Sh40 million loan, adding to the financial woes of the embattled politician, who is currently serving a 12-year sentence.

Pelican Credit has retained the services of Garam Auctioneers to find a buyer for half an acre of undeveloped land in Ruai, Nairobi, belonging to the politician popularly known as Babayao. Mr Waititu is said to have defaulted on a Sh30 million loan.

The auction piles further pressure on the jailed politician, whose properties-including some vehicles-are also being auctioned by Mwananchi Credit, another micro-lender, over unpaid Sh10 million loans.

The former Kabete MP is serving a the jail term after the court found him guilty of engaging in corruption, developments that have left him in financial straits, with some of his businesses having been confiscated.

‘All that parcel of land known as Title No. Nairobi/Block 105/8659 Ruai/Eastern Bypass Interchange, Ruai Township along Kangundo Road, Nairobi County, registered in the name of Ferdinand Ndungu Waititu Babayao,’ reads the auction notice published in the Daily Nation on Monday, January 19, 2026.

The auction points to Waititu’s economic predicaments, aggravated by his impeachment due to graft and the decision by the State, with the nod of the High Court, to freeze or confiscate most of his properties.

The property being auctioned is situated opposite Be-Energy Petrol Station, Ruai, and at the junction underpass.

‘The subject plot measures 0.2059 hectares (0.509 acres) or thereabouts, and it is underdeveloped. The title is a leasehold interest for a term of 99 years,’ added Garam.

‘Mains electricity and piped water services are available for connection to the subject property from within the immediate neighborhood. Drainage will be directed to the mains sewer.’

The land being auctioned was one of the two properties that Mr. Waititu used as security for a Sh30 million loan he took from Pelican, the politician told the court.

However, Mr Waititu said he fell behind in repayment of the loan after paying only Sh9.8 million, forcing Pelican to slap him with interests and penalties that left him owing the bank Sh40 million.

‘The plaintiff (Waititu) avers that this demand is improper, illegal, and extortionist,’ he said in an affidavit dated November 5, 2025.

Mr Waititu, who was barred from vying for any political office after being impeached and convicted of a criminal offence, had his properties-including homes and cars-valued at Sh1.9 billion frozen by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) for being proceeds of crime.

In February last year, an anti-corruption court sent Mr Waititu, alongside his wife, Susan Wangari, to jail over corrupt business dealings during his tenure at Kiambu County. Mr Waititu is serving a 12-year sentence at Industrial Area Prison, while his wife is serving a separate sentence.

The court condemned Mr Waititu for engaging in self-enrichment endeavours and failing to demonstrate servant leadership as governor.

Mr Waititu was impeached by the Kiambu County Assembly in December 2019 over corruption, among other malpractices. The decision was upheld by the Senate in January 2020. His attempts to challenge his ouster were thrown out by the High Court.

Two days before the Senate impeached him on graft claims, microlender Mwananchi Credit threatened to auction his property after he defaulted on a Sh10 million loan he took on January 27, 2019.

Mwananchi Credit seized Mr Waititu’s two luxury vehicles, which he used as collateral for the loan.

The former governor then moved to court seeking to block the auction, arguing he had fallen on hard economic times even as he sought more time to repay the loan.

‘That due to current financial constraints I am facing, I am unable to clear the said loan within the aforementioned period, but I hasten to add that with a lot of difficulties coupled with the fact that I am facing numerous cases before an anti-corruption court, which has incurred me a lot of costs and expenses by hiring advocates. I have endeavoured to at least clear a sum of Sh1,280,000,’ Mr Waititu said through an affidavit.

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