The Nairobi office block, which served as the Jubilee party's headquarters in the 2013 and 2017 elections, will be auctioned off on September 13th.
A seven-story building in Nairobi that has
been leased to the ruling Jubilee Party for nearly a decade was auctioned off
on Monday, with the bank hoping to raise Sh435 million from the prime property.
According to persons acquainted with the
loan, Stanbic Bank Kenya, a subsidiary of South Africa's Standard Bank, is
attempting to recoup millions of shillings for a debt that went into default
last year.
The 0.56-acre building is affiliated with a
former high official in President Daniel arap Moi's cabinet who also served as
Rift Valley MP.
The Business Daily was unable to determine
the extent of the overdue loan in an economy where a number of renowned people
have gone bankrupt due to unpaid bank loans.
The Nairobi office block, which served as
the Jubilee party's headquarters in the 2013 and 2017 elections, will be
auctioned off on September 13th.
However, with the breakdown between
President Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto in 2021, the buzz of
activity in the party slowed.
The auctioneer stated, "All that plot
of land known as LR no 209/1530 Emani Business Centre along Thika Road, Pangani
region, Nairobi County registered in the name of Farmers Industry Limited,
g/t... Florence Wairimu Mbugua."
"Before being authorized to bid,
bidders would be asked to submit a bidding deposit of Sh5 million in cash or bankers’
cheque."
Caleb Kositany, the then-Jubilee party
deputy secretary, said in 2018 that the party was paying roughly Sh90 million
in annual rent for the seven-story structure.
Mortgage defaults have increased in recent
months, indicating widespread suffering in the real estate industry as Kenya's
economy rebounds from the Covid-19 economic woes and property auctions resume.
For the first time, bank loan defaults have
surpassed the half-a-trillion-shilling mark, putting thousands of borrowers at
risk of property seizures in an economy affected by lower cash flows and
inflation, which has squeezed household budgets and demand for commodities.
According to the most recent Central Bank
of Kenya (CBK) data, defaulted loans increased by Sh30.6 billion in June to
Sh514.4 billion, the largest monthly increase in recent history.
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