Teita surrenders 200 acres to settle squatters of Singila
Taita Taveta County Deputy Governor, Mary Ndigha (right) speaking to Teita Sisal Estate Managing Director, Mr Philip Kerriazy, during the signing of MoU between the county government and Teita Sisal Estate in Mwatate on 17,5,2016. PHOTO | LUCY MKANYIKA | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- Governor John Mruttu described Teita Sisal Estate's move to hive off 200 acres for settling the squatters as a right step towards ending landlessness in Taita Taveta County.
- The agreement was signed despite opposition from some members of Mwasima Mbuwa Welfare Association.
- Members of the group, mainly residents of Singila/Majengo, have lived as squatters in the land for more than 40 years.
Governor John Mruttu and Teita Sisal Estate have signed an agreement which will see the company cede part of its land to settle squatters in Singila/Majengo.
The governor described the move by the sisal estate to hive off 200 acres for settling the squatters as a right step towards ending landlessness in the county.
The agreement was signed by the governor and the estate manager, Mr Philip Keriazzy, despite opposition from some members of Mwasima Mbuwa Welfare Association. The group has claimed that the sisal estate encroached onto their ancestral land.
Members of the group, mainly residents of Singila/Majengo, have lived as squatters in the land for more than 40 years. They have been fighting for more than 70,000 acres of land, which they claim to own.
CONDUCT SURVEY
This week, the Ministry of Lands and Urban Development is expected to conduct a perimeter survey on the sisal estate to determine its total acreage.
However, Governor Mruttu assured the squatters that the agreement between the county government and the estate will not interfere with the exercise.
Mwasima Mbuwa members and its legal advisors, who attended the signing ceremony, had urged the governor not to go ahead with the arrangement because a previous High Court order had stated that a status quo on the ownership of the land be maintained.
“Members of Mwasima Mbuwa will not be part of this signing ceremony because we do not understand which part of land the sisal estate wants to excise,” said the association’s legal advisor, Mr Tom Nduku.
