Joho: Mombasa County to pay Waitiki cash
What you need to know:
While issuing 5,000 title deeds in November, President Kenyatta said every landowner was to pay and the money refunded to the Settlement Fund Trustee.
However, only 1,400 out of 5,007 squatters have collected their leasehold titles, having paid a total of Sh700,000.
The leases for the balance of 2,800 parcels have not been processed due to inadequate information on the owners or family disputes.
Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho says the county government will pay arrears demanded from squatters who got plots on Waitiki farm.
Mr Joho who was speaking at Ngala Grounds during an ODM campaign rally for the March 7 Malindi by-election said the devolved government would pay the money at agreeable terms.
“This is to enable poor residents own land after the government insisted that every landowner must pay Sh182,000,” Mr Joho said.
He added that most of the squatters were poor and had lived on the farm for many years.
PENDING TITLES
The leases for the balance of 2,800 parcels have not been processed due to inadequate information on the owners or family disputes.
Some occupants have also not presented themselves at the lands office.
However, the Ministry of Lands and Housing and the National Land Commission have started on Phase 3 to address pending issues.
The controversy had dragged for years, with Mr Evanson Kamau Waitiki demanding Sh9 billion for the land.
While issuing 5,000 title deeds in November, President Kenyatta said every landowner was to pay and the money refunded to the Settlement Fund Trustee.
However, only 1,400 out of 5,007 squatters have collected their leasehold titles, having paid a total of Sh700,000.
Lands Cabinet Secretary Jacob Kaimenyi and the land commission have urged landowners “to ignore lies discrediting the titles”.
Speaking to the Nation recently, the squatters spokesman Fuad Abdalla said about 200 occupiers’ cases were yet to be resolved since survey and adjudication was completed in December.
“Top government officers on the ground had promised to come back to deal with the cases but we have not seen them to date,” he added.