State House land to be repossessed
What you need to know:
- The plot owners are expected to appear before the commission next week.
- Current owners of the plots bought them from the first owners.
Owners of 14 plots within State House, Mombasa must move out.
All the structures erected on the plots will consequently be demolished, National Land Commission announced on Monday.
Commission chairman Dr Muhamad Swazuri said they have established all plots between Mombasa Hospital and the State House are within the protected area.
“They will have to explain how they acquired the pieces of land,” Dr Swazuri said.
“We will summon them to establish whether they got the land legally or illegally. But even if they got it legally, they can’t be allowed to stay in State House and so, we shall take a decision and which, I have to say, will include demolishing all the structures,” he said.
'HIVED OFF'
The plot owners are expected to appear before the commission next week.
“The plots were hived off land belonging to State House and sub-divided among individuals between 1996 and 1998,” Dr Swazuri said.
Current owners of the plots bought them from the first owners. The defunct Municipal Council and District Development Committee oversaw land in the area then.
Dr Swazuri said land belonging to other State House and state lodges in Nakuru, Kisumu, Eldoret, Mtito Andei had also been grabbed.
He spoke in Likoni where he met families that will be affected by the Dongo Kundu bypass project.
Dr Swazuri also revealed an eight-acre land belonging to Kenya Ports Authority at Shimoni in the South Coast had been grabbed.
