Sen James Orengo has responded to the recent revelations of illegal allocation of public land in Lamu which was allegedly done during his tenure in office as minister for lands. In his statement, he says legally Cabinet Ministers dont append signatures on title deeds, terms Ngilus claims misleading. It is this assertion that prompted the need to clear the air for Kenyans to understand what goes on during land registration and which official ranks are culpable. It is also possible that the said tracks of land were not issued at that time but have just been backdated. In this analysis we give a detailed exploration of the administration of land in Kenya. The issue of land, its ownership, use and management is a highly emotive one in Kenya and was one of the key issues that drove the need for a new constitution. Following lengthy deliberations and a comprehensive public participation process, a new constitution (the Constitution) was promulgated on 27 August 2010. The Constitution sets out principles governing land and also requires all laws relating to land to be revised, consolidated and rationalised within certain timelines. The administrative structures for management of land in Kenya changed with the promulgation of the 2010 constitution. The National Land Commission (the Commission) has wide powers in the management and administration of public, private and community land. The chairperson and members of the Commission were identified through a public, transparent and competitive selection process and ultimately approved by Parliament. In order to carry out its functions effectively, the Commission was required to devolve the administration of land. This has already taken place lately. Consequently the Commission is required to establish offices and land management boards at the county level. The allocation of public land to private individuals has been a concern for many Kenyans for a long time. Allocation of public land was within the control of public officers at the Ministry of Lands, who were susceptible to influence by the executive arm of the Government. The process of allocation of public land was therefore shrouded in secrecy and often, members of the public would only realize that public land has been expropriated, after a title deed has been issued to private persons. Allocation of public land to private persons is now managed and supervised by the Commission. This creates independence in the allocation process as the executive arm of the Government will no longer have control of the process. In addition, land available for allocation must be Gazetted and notices published in at least two local dailies, prior to commencement of the allocation process. This was meant to go a long way in creating transparency and public participation in the allocation process. In the case of Lamu and the coast region in the coast, there were no public notices issued prior to the issuance of most of the public land issued since the promulgation of the new constitution. However, contrary to the popular speculation that the then minister had a hand in the allocation of the said public land, the constitution gives immense powers to The Chief Land Registrar, County Land Registrars or any other land registrars. These officers in addition to the powers conferred on the office of the Registrar by the land Act also may refuse to proceed with any registration if any instrument, certificate or other document, plan, information or explanation required to be produced or given is withheld or any act required to be performed under this Act is not performed. This means that the illegal allocations of the public land is a long chain of officers involved. Though the lands minister has a role to direct policy, the final decision does not stop at the minister of lands. However from the powers vested in the office, the minister has the responsibility to supervise and direct the implementation of government policy in land. This involves allocation and repossession of public land. In this regard Orengo must clear the air and help name the land officials who were involved in this scam. Most of the lands officials have been transferred so far to other ministries something that leaves many questions unanswered. To solve these injustices, the TJRC report gave recommendations on how these injustices can be solved once and for all. The solution of the land question remains in the TJRC report implementation.
Posted on: Sat, 02 Aug 2014 17:22:50 +0000
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