NAIROBI, Kenya- Pioneer International School, associated with billionaire businessman Peter Munga, has been ordered to vacate a 75-acre parcel of land owned by food processing company Del Monte Kenya Limited, following a prolonged legal battle over its occupation of the property.
The Court of Appeal dismissed the school’s challenge against an earlier eviction order in a judgment delivered on Friday, November 6, 2026, ruling that the institution had no legally enforceable tenancy agreement with the landowner.
A three-judge bench comprising Justices Agnes Murgor, Aggrey Muchelule and Joel Ngugi upheld Del Monte’s right to recover the property, which Pioneer has occupied since taking over the school business from Goshen Gardens Limited in 2015.
However, the judges granted the institution a temporary reprieve until the end of December to complete the academic year and facilitate an orderly relocation of students, staff and examination candidates.
The court emphasised that the extension would protect learners from disruptions arising from a dispute they had no role in creating, but it did not give Pioneer any additional ownership or tenancy rights.
The ruling brings the school’s latest appeal to an end after years of disagreements over the legality of its occupation of land within Del Monte’s agricultural estate near Thika, Murang’a County.
The dispute dates back to September 3, 2013, when Del Monte entered into an eight-year lease agreement with Goshen Gardens Limited, allowing the company to operate a school on approximately 75 acres of its land.
The agreement required Goshen Gardens to pay an initial monthly rent of Sh550,000, subject to annual increases of five per cent.
However, the lease prohibited the tenant from transferring or assigning its interest in the property without obtaining Del Monte’s consent.
Goshen Gardens fell into rent arrears in February 2015, prompting Del Monte to issue a termination notice on May 5, 2015.
The former tenant challenged the termination, accusing Del Monte of breaching their agreement by reducing the leased property from 100 acres to 75 acres. It also complained about alleged trespassing and interference with the school’s security.
The dispute initially went through attempts at arbitration and settlement negotiations.
In July 2015, Goshen Gardens approached Munga with an offer to sell its school business, assets, equipment and designated facilities for an additional Sh38 million.
Munga accepted the arrangement and subsequently invested in rehabilitating the institution, whose infrastructure and equipment he described as being in a deplorable condition.
He took over the school’s operations and established Pioneer International School on the disputed property.
However, Del Monte maintained that Goshen Gardens had transferred possession without its authorisation and that the original lease did not permit such an arrangement.
The company also insisted that any consideration of a new lease for Munga would only happen after Goshen Gardens surrendered possession of the property.
Pioneer argued that Del Monte knew about its takeover, participated in discussions surrounding the transition and watched as it invested substantial resources in rehabilitating the school.
The institution maintained that the company’s conduct created an expectation that it would eventually receive a direct lease.
It also relied on the legal doctrine of proprietary estoppel, arguing that Del Monte could not allow it to invest millions of shillings in the property before denying it the right to remain there.
However, the appellate judges rejected the argument, finding that the school had failed to demonstrate any clear assurance from Del Monte that it would receive a new tenancy.
The court explained that discussions about a possible lease remained conditional on Goshen Gardens first surrendering the premises, a condition that had not materialised.
In dismissing the argument, the judges observed: “Pioneer may well have acted in optimism that those negotiations would mature. But optimism, however commercially understandable, is not tenancy.”
The court further stated: “Equity protects expectations induced by the property owner. Equity does not convert a party’s unilateral hope or exuberant optimism into a proprietary right.”
The judges acknowledged that Pioneer had invested heavily in the institution, recruited students and employees, and rehabilitated its facilities.
However, they found that these investments could not substitute for the landowner’s consent or create a legally enforceable tenancy.
The court also rejected the argument that Pioneer’s occupation automatically qualified it for protection under the Landlord and Tenant (Shops, Hotels and Catering Establishments) Act.
The judges directed the institution to continue paying monthly occupation charges at the rates applicable immediately before the judgment under the original Goshen Gardens lease.
However, they clarified that these payments would not establish a landlord-tenant relationship between Pioneer and Del Monte. The court also restricted the school’s activities during the transition period.
Pioneer cannot sublet, assign, expand or make alterations to the premises beyond what ordinary school operations require. The institution must surrender vacant possession by the December 31 deadline.
If it fails to comply, Del Monte can enforce the eviction without returning to court to obtain another order.
The appellate court also awarded costs to Del Monte, marking another legal victory for the company in its efforts to recover the disputed property.
