The National Assembly’s committee Lands is considering several land matters arising from petitions, complaints, and requests for clarification before the committee.
The State Department for Lands and Physical Planning has submitted information to the committee in response to questions raised on four matters involving land in Tindiret, Lenana Road in Nairobi, Diani Complex and Kipini in Tana River County.
The committee said it will continue to distinguish between documented facts, allegations, responses by government institutions and matters that require further verification as it inquires into the four land disputes.
The committee chaired by North Mugirango MP Joash Nyamoko says the four matters before the team involve different factual and administrative circumstances.
“The information submitted by the State Department for Lands indicates that LR No. 1468 in Tindiret reverted to government after expiry of the earlier lease and subsequently entered a settlement programme,” Mr Nyamoko said in a statement.
“Lenana Road: The records presented by the State Department show a long chain of registered transactions and subsequent amalgamation. The State Department also acknowledges irregularities in the registration records relating to the transfer and cancellation of original conveyances.”
On the dispute surrounding the Diani Complex, Mr Nyamoko said the State Department records show an initial subdivision of 74 parcels covering approximately 34 acres.
He said the State Department stated that it does not hold survey records supporting later subdivisions.
The MP said the submission also refers to a 2019 court judgment affecting the titles over the original parcels.
In the Kipini land dispute, the committee said the State Department indicated that several court proceedings have addressed the ownership and acquisition questions concerning Kipini Conservancy land.
“The State Department relies on the court findings cited in the submission and identifies the National Land Commission as the institution responsible for matters concerning the acquisition process,” Mr Nyamoko said.
He said the information provided by the State Department distinguishes between established information contained in official records, claims made by parties and matters that remain subject to clarification.
Mr Nyamoko said in Tindiret, Nandi County, the committee is considering the ownership status of LR No. 1468, which is associated with Chemelil Sugar and is currently claimed by Tambul Farmers Company Limited.
The matter involves land in Tindiret, Lenana Road in Nairobi, Diani Complex and Kipini in Tana River County.
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He said according to the submission from the State Department for Lands and Physical Planning, LR No. 1468 was initially registered in favour of Chemelil Sisal Estate Limited for a 99-year term beginning on September 1, 1911. The land measured approximately 3,620 acres.
“The submission states that the lease expired in 2010 and was not renewed. The land therefore reverted to the government. The State Department states that the land was reserved for the Settlement Fund Trustee on May 1, 2012,” Mr Nyamoko said.
He said the State Department stated that the land was planned as Chemelil Settlement Scheme in 2016.
The scheme was surveyed and allocated to 744 beneficiaries and 26 public utility parcels, and available records do not confirm transfer or registration of the land in the name of Tambul Farmers Cooperative Limited, except for a court order in Civil Case No. 177 of 1995 that was registered as an entry in the land register.
On the Lenana Road, Nairobi LR No. 209/324/3, the committee is probing an allegation concerning the alleged fraudulent dispossession of LR No. 209/324/3, and the alleged involvement of the National Social Security Fund (NSSF).
Mr Nyamoko said the State Department said that the parcel measures approximately 5.07 acres and is held under freehold tenure.
“It states that the property was transferred through several registered transactions before it was transferred to Opus Investments Limited in 1989,” he said.
National Assembly Lands Committee Chairman Joash Nyamoko and his deputy Jayne Kihara during a fact-finding mission in Eldoret on 7 June 2024.
Photo credit: Jared Nyataya | Nation Media Group
“According to the submission, Opus Investments Limited later transferred the property to the National Social Security Fund Board of Trustees through a conveyance dated July 3, 1989 for a consideration of Sh63 million.”
He said the State Department further stated that the property was subsequently acquired by the Ministry of Defence and amalgamated with LR No. 209/324/2 and other parcels.
On the Diani Complex Map Sheet 4, Mr Nyamoko said the State Department identifies the land as comprising KWALE/DIANI BEACH/BLOCK/856 and parcels 551, 552, 553, 555, 556, 557, 558 and 559, also referred to in the submission as Darad Farm land.
“The submission further states that the Land Registrar in Kwale cancelled KWALE/DIANI BEACH/BLOCK/856 through Gazette Notice No. 7752 of 9 July 2010. Following that action, a Diani Complex settlement scheme was created over the affected area. The State Department states that the original registers and survey plans remained intact,” Mr Nyamoko said.
“The State Department identifies Survey Sheet No. 4 as showing an initial subdivision into 74 parcels covering approximately 34 acres.”
The submission further refers to Mombasa Constitutional Petition No. 21 of 2010, in which a three-judge bench delivered judgment in 2019 that recognised Leisure Lodge Limited as the registered owner of the affected parcels.
In the disputed Kipini Community Land, the committee is considering an allegation concerning unlawful acquisition of the land by Kipini Conservancy in Garsen Sub-County, Tana River County.
The committee said the State Department stated that the matter has been the subject of several court proceedings and the court found that claims of communal or ancestral land had not been proved, that the conservancy land is private land associated with Nairobi Ranching Company Limited, and that the land was gazetted as a provisional forest through Legal Notice No. 214 of 15 December 2010.
