Some 28 residents affected by Nithi bridge project in Tharaka Nithi County will have to hand over their land to the government in two weeks and await compensation after the National Land Commission served them with notices of early entry.
This is despite President William Ruto's recent assurance that the government had concluded compensating land owners affected by the project.
"We have allocated Sh7 billion for Nithi bridge construction and the contractor is already on site. We have also concluded the compensation process and work is ongoing to fix the bridge which has claimed lives for over 30 years," President Ruto told a congregation at Burieruri Senior School in Meru on Sunday.
But on Tuesday, the National Land Commission (NLC) invoked Section 120 (2) of the Land Act which allows government to take possession of private land before compensation.
This means the government has classified the Nithi bridge project as an urgent necessity, whose delay is against public interest.
Section 120 (2) of the Land Act states that; "Where there is an urgent necessity to acquire land, and delaying the acquisition by following the normal compulsory acquisition procedures would be contrary to the public interest, the National Land Commission may take possession of the land 15 days after the publication of the notice of intention to acquire, even if no compensation award has yet been made..."
Earlier in May, NLC published a notice for compulsory acquisition listing 65 parcels of land measuring about 30 acres in the project area.
Officials from the NLC and Kenya National Highways Authority (Kenha) led by Tharaka Nithi County Commissioner David Gitonga had a hard time convincing affected individuals to sign the early entry notices and await compensation.
Land owners expressed concern that they were ambushed with the notice of early entry while they were expecting an update on the compensation process.
"We were informed that even if we do not sign the early entry notice, the chief can receive and sign on our behalf. I had no option but to sign it myself. I came to the meeting expecting information on the compensation for my three parcels of land," Ms Eunita Mukwanyaga said.
Mr Munene Njeru, a resident, said they had attended the meeting in high spirits after the President said the compensation process had been concluded.
"How come the government has funds to pay the contractor yet there is no clear budget for land owners? We are worried because the president said compensation has been done," Mr Njeru said.
Ms Pauline Gituma said they did not get clear timelines for conclusion of the compensation afrer the compulsory acquisition.
But NLC Director for Valuation and Taxation Joel Ombati said the government had opted for early entry on undeveloped land since the contractor was already on site.
He said this was also necessitated by the fact that even a fast-tracked compulsory acquisition procedure would be concluded in three months.
"Kenha has requested us to effect Section 120 (2) of the Land Act to pave way for construction of bridge columns. After reviewing the request, we found the Authority is justified because a contract has already been signed but the contractor has no land to work on. We are issuing early entry notices to 28 land owners," Mr Ombati said.
Noting that the commission is only obligated to prove it served a notice of early entry and that there is no provision for consent by land owners, Mr Ombati said the commission was yet to conclude inquiries into land ownership to pave way for issuance of award letters.
"I wish to assure affected land owners that the government has money for compensation. The notice of early entry does not stop the compensation process," he said.
KeNHA Nithi Bridge project manager Mr Michael Ngala said the contractor was already on site ready to start work.
Tharaka Nithi County Commissioner David Gitonga said his office would keep residents updated on the compensation process to clear all doubts.
"A lot of propaganda is being peddled about the Nithi bridge project but the government is on track. When the president said compensation has been done, he meant funds are already available. Land valuation has been concluded and I will ensure the owners are compensated," Mr Gitonga said.
