A second prime property belonging to former Jubilee Party Secretary-General Raphael Tuju is set for auction, as the East African Development Bank (EADB) continues efforts to recover a disputed debt of about Sh4.5 billion arising from a decade-old loan advanced to his company.
Garam Investments Auctioneers has issued a public notice confirming that Entim Sidai Wellness Sanctuary, Tuju’s sprawling Karen estate, will be sold on August 25, 2026. It follows the earlier sale of another of his prime properties after EADB moved to enforce repayment of the loan, citing default by Tuju’s company.
The auction notice describes the property in detail: “The property is developed with a well-maintained, spacious colonial house, partly double-storey and partly single-storey, with nine ensuite bedrooms.” The estate spans roughly 20 acres in the upmarket Nairobi suburb.
This latest move to sell the property comes after the High Court temporarily halted the sale on May 21, on condition that Tuju deposit Sh50 million with the court within 30 days. Judges also ordered him to file an appeal against the forced sale within 60 days, warning that the suspension would lapse automatically if he failed to do so.
The same court, however, upheld the earlier sale of two of Tuju’s other properties, Tamarind Karen and Dari Business Park, ruling that his window to reverse that transaction had closed once the auction concluded and ownership passed to Stabex International co-owner Jackson Kiplimo Chebett in 2024.
The bank had sold that property, sitting on 6.8 acres, to Chebett’s company Ultra Eureka Ltd for Sh450 million on October 1, 2024. Ultra Eureka subsequently used the title as security for a $2.5 million (Sh324 million) loan from Kenya Commercial Bank.
Tuju had pledged both properties as collateral for a $9.3 million loan EADB advanced to his company, Dari Limited, in April 2015. At current exchange rates, the facility is equivalent to roughly Sh1.2 billion, but EADB says accumulated interest, penalties and other charges have driven the outstanding balance to approximately Sh4.5 billion.
Entim Sidai began life as a Victorian bungalow that Tuju intended to redevelop into a retirement village under a project known as the Karen Retirement Home. The 20.2-acre estate was envisioned as a blend of colonial-era residence, resort-style facilities, and a purpose-built wellness centre complete with a clinic, spa and conference space.
Since taking out the EADB loan on April 10, 2015, Tuju has been engaged in a protracted legal fight to keep the venture, and the business interests he built over decades, from collapsing.
The facility was structured in two tranches. The first, worth $9.3 million, funded the purchase of the Karen land where Tuju planned to build luxury retirement villas. The second, worth Sh294 million, was meant to finance the construction phase.
Tuju has long maintained that EADB breached the loan agreement by withholding that second tranche, which was intended to fund 30 three-bedroom maisonettes on one plot and eight five-bedroom units on another.
The bank disputes this, maintaining that the conditions for the second drawdown were never met, among them, the submission of architects’ certificates confirming completed works within the agreed drawdown period and the provision of additional security in the form of Tuju’s Upper Hill property.
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