Kenya's founding President Mzee Jomo Kenyatta was arrested and detained when his eldest daughter Margaret Wambui Kenyatta was barely 24 years old.
Wambui was Kenyatta's daughter from his first marriage with Grace Wahu. Former Juja Member of Parliament Peter Kenyatta was Wambui's only sibling.
The colonial government accused Mzee Kenyatta of being the leader of the dreaded Mau Mau movement and was apprehended alongside fellow freedom fighters in what was dubbed as 'Operation Jock Stock' on October 20, 1952.
While serving his jail term at Lokitaung Prison in Turkana, the former Head of State received a letter from his daughter informing him that his land in Gatundu, Kiambu County had been grabbed by the colonialists.
The colonialists had established an agricultural institution at the land that was being used to train farmers on animal husbandry and crop production.
Kenyatta, who was known for his unmatched appetite for land, didn't protest the grabbing and he wrote back to his daughter telling her everything was happening according to 'God's plan'.
"Everything that is being done there is according to the will of the Almighty God, so I see it as good, especially the way the shambas are being used for teaching agriculture and animal husbandry. This is very useful for those who are learning to help improve the life of the people. Let us thank God to guard us and keep us in his grace, with mercy and kindness," he wrote as recorded by his biographer Jeremy Murray-Brown.
After he was released from prison in 1961, Kenyatta rose to become Prime Minister and later President when Kenya gained independence.
The newly installed Head of State used his position to repossess his Gatundu land and bought more parcels on land in Juja, Thika, Githunguri, Limuru and Lari areas.
Today, the Kenyatta family owns thousands of acres of land in various parts of the country, some of which were allegedly grabbed or allocated irregularly.
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