Ministry, House rift stalls crucial land Bill

What you need to know:

  • The Investigations and Adjudication of Historical Land Injustices Bill is among the proposed laws Parliament is expected to pass by August 27.
  • The Minimum and Maximum Land Holding Bill was opposed by a number of MPs. Mr Muiru said the Bill was controversial, given that land is a sensitive issue in the country.

The National Land Commission will not handle the issue of historical injustices until Parliament passes a Bill on it.

House Committee on Lands chairman Alex Muiru said the proposed law had been delayed by failure by the ministry and Parliament to agree on the matter.

Speaking at Travellers Beach Resort in Mombasa on Saturday, Mr Muiru said the problem was also due to the redrafting of the Bill after the ministry and the commission provided additional information.

The Investigations and Adjudication of Historical Land Injustices Bill is among the proposed laws Parliament is expected to pass by August 27.

During the three-day retreat, the House team discussed three other Bills set to be presented in Parliament in two weeks.

They include the Minimum and Maximum Land Holding Acreage as well as Community and Physical Planning Bills.

The Minimum and Maximum Land Holding Bill was opposed by a number of MPs. Mr Muiru said the Bill was controversial, given that land is a sensitive issue in the country.

It proposes a minimum acreage of 3,000 for pastoralists and a maximum of 40,000. The proposal has met strong opposition from big land owners.

MPs Gideon Mung’aro (Kilifi North), Mathew Lempurkel (Laikipia North), Kanini Kega (Kieni) and Francis Njenga (Gatundu North) said it was not in line with Vision 2030, which encourages large investments. “Some investors will need hundreds of acres and limiting them on how much land they can own is unrealistic,” said Mr Njenga.

Meanwhile, NLC chairman Muhammad Swazuri has asked Kenyans keen on the resolution of historical injustices to wait for the Bill to be passed.

Speaking at Kenya School of Government in Mombasa, Dr Swazuri said: “The Bill is our only solution.”