North Rift farmers oppose Bill limiting land ownership
What you need to know:
- Official wants issue to be part of the Okoa Kenya agenda.
- Proposal meets stiff resistance from residents, who hold their land dear.
Farmers in the North Rift region have opposed a proposed Bill that sets a limit on the number of acres an individual can own in agricultural counties.
The Kenya Minimum and Maximum Land Holding Acreage Bill of 2015 proposes that no single farmer in Uasin Gishu, Kisii, Vihiga, Nandi, Trans Nzoia, Bungoma, Bomet and Nyamira counties should own more than 24.7 acres.
Mr Jackson Kibor, a farmer, said they legally acquired the land. He warned the Bill is likely to fuel tension in the region.
“Business people in towns also enjoy 99-year leases like those who own large tracts of land. We bought the land through our hard-earned money and we do not see why a few individuals should be allowed to benefit,” he said at a farmers’ meeting in Eldoret on Monday.
Mr Joel Barmasai, another farmer, said after independence people were allowed to choose between business or land as an investment.
“People in this region chose land for agriculture. Land is our heart, we will not allow it to be limited,” he said.
“The reason we opposed the Constitution in 2010 is because of this issue of land. If you have a five-storey building, how comes you are not asked to cede two floors? Is it not also an investment?” he said.
CRISIS MEETING
Mr Barmasai said they were promised that after the Constitution was passed, contentious clauses would be amended.
Kenya Farmers Association Director Kipkorir Menjo asked elected leaders in the counties which are likely to be the hardest hit by the Bill to call a crisis meeting to chart the way forward.
“We are talking with our lawyer to ensure this Bill does not see the light of day. If our leaders would not succeed, we would include it as part of the Okoa Kenya,” said Mr Menjo.
During the 2010 referendum, Rift Valley residents overwhelmingly voted against the proposed new Constitution because they were dissatisfied with the manner in which land matters were to addressed.
The drafters of the Bill say putting a cap on land ownership will help address the growing population. Farmers have dismissed it as discriminatory.
Mr Benjamin Tirim, another farmer, said the willing buyer, willing seller policy at independence allowed them to acquire land competitively.
