President Uhuru Kenyatta with the then acting Land Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i (right), Principal Secretary Mariamu El Maawy (left), Mr Evans Waitiki (second right) and the Likoni MP Masoud Mwahima (second left) after resolving the 18-year Waitiki land row at State House, Nairobi, on November 18, 2015.
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How State ended infamous Waitiki land tussle
What you need to know:
- The dispute, though resolved, is just the tip of the iceberg as there are many disputes where individuals claiming ownership and squatters are embroiled in legal tussles over large tracts of land in the Coast.
The Waitiki land case is probably the only dispute between squatters and a land owner that was successfully resolved by the government.
The dispute, though resolved, is just the tip of the iceberg as there are many disputes where individuals claiming ownership and squatters are embroiled in legal tussles over large tracts of land in the Coast.
Mr Evanson Jidraph Kamau Waitiki was paid about Sh1 billion for the 980-acre parcel of land in Likoni, Mombasa which he said he bought in 1975, then a young man aged 30. He had briefly returned home from Japan where he was working.
In January 2016, during the issuance of title deeds to squatters on the Waitiki land, President Uhuru Kenyatta told the residents that money from the Settlement Fund Trustee had been used to buy the land and had to be refunded.
The President had told the residents that they had to pay the money to help others in a similar situation after local leaders called on the government to waive the Sh182,000 that was to be paid by each squatter.
Sometime after the issuance of the title deeds, Prof Jacob Kaimenyi, the then Lands minister, said the deal for the squatters on the Waitiki land was the best as they would pay Sh1,000 a month for 12 years.
He further said that more than 65 per cent of the squatters had paid and collected titles for their parcels of land.
"Happy and stress-free"
In a previous interview with the Nation in Mombasa, Mr Waitiki said he was happy with the land deal, but declined to reveal how much he had been paid by the government.
“I am very happy and stress-free now, although I did not get what I wanted. It is important that you thank God for what you get. In life, you cannot always get everything that you want,” he said during the interview.
The Waitiki land in Likoni had been subject to court cases since 1999 until the government issued title deeds to the squatters in 2016.
According to court documents, Mr Waitiki bought the farm in 1975 from Gulb Wood company Ltd in whose name it was registered. Mr Waitiki engaged in large scale farming on the land, producing fresh milk, chicken and fruits, which he exported to countries like South Africa.
The 1997 Likoni clashes led to his eviction from the land, when attackers raided his farm, destroying property.
After the clashes, squatters invaded and settled on the land. It took Mr Waitiki more than 18 years to get a relief, despite many court orders in his favour for squatters to vacate the land.
