Nairobi — The East African Development Bank (EADB) has said it sold property linked to former Cabinet Secretary Raphael Tuju after the firm failed to repay a loan taken to develop the property.

In a statement, the regional lender said Dari Limited had not repaid the loan during a seven-year-long dispute.

According to EADB, Dari Limited, a company registered in Kenya, borrowed Sh1.2 billion under a loan facility agreement dated April 10, 2015, which was negotiated and agreed upon by both parties.

"As security for the facility, Dari Limited shareholders and directors pledged various properties they owned in Nairobi which were subsequently charged to the Bank," EADB said.

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"Subsequently, the loan was drawn on the 29th of July 2015 pursuant to the terms of the Facility Agreement, after the charges were duly registered in favour of the Bank," it added.

However, in the second quarter of 2016, the Tuju-linked firm defaulted on the loan, prompting EADB to issue demand notices to Dari Limited in November 2017, which were ignored and not honoured.

The lender subsequently sought legal redress in the High Court of Justice in the United Kingdom, as provided for under the facility agreement.

On June 19, 2019, the bank obtained judgment for about Sh1 billion covering the principal sum, interest and penalties which continued to accrue in line with the facility agreement. Both parties had legal representation in the English courts.

The High Court of Kenya later recognised and confirmed the UK judgment against Dari Limited on February 13, 2020, and it was subsequently upheld by the Court of Appeal of Kenya on April 20, 2023.

"Consequently, under the terms of the charge, the Bank successfully auctioned the Ngong Road property that had been pledged by Dari Limited as security on October 1, 2024, after following all due processes and the highest bidder purchased the property. At the time, there were no court orders preventing the sale of the property at the auction," EADB stated.

After the auction, Dari Limited sued the bank and service providers challenging, among other issues, the valuation of the property. The firm was granted an interim injunction relating to pledged property that had not yet been sold.

However, in a ruling delivered on March 9, 2026, the High Court of Kenya struck out the suit and effectively vacated the interim orders.