Land issues can’t be sorted out by grabbers

I have keenly followed recent events on the Lamu land scandal, and I am discouraged by the fact that things never seem to improve however much we talk about them.

The issue of land grabbing or arbitrary allocation of public land to powerful individuals is nothing new in Kenya.

I recall some in the military who were allocated large chunks of productive land. It appeared legitimate and normal for the occupier of State House to give away public land on a whim.

The President had excessive powers under the old Constitution, including powers to allocate land.

Certainly, these landowners effectively own Kenya today in every sense of the word. The children of past influential figures have taken over and are in strategic positions as policy-makers.

GRABBING AND DISPOSSESSION

We look up to them to decide on the implementation of the Ndun’gu land report as much as we depend on them for matters of constitutional changes. They are governors, members of Parliament, and members of constitutional commissions.

This is the new generation of leaders we look up to, and it is why I think the war on corruption is already lost.

It is understood that the malfeasance by the Executive with regard to land matters in the past is the skewed manner and favouritism with which it exercised those powers.

In many places, indigenous people were often dispossessed of their heritage by strangers who then turned such communities into squatters.

Take the case of the Nubi in Nairobi. President Kenyatta had recently considered dealing with land matters in Kibra, but he retracted his earlier plan.

PROTECTING KENYANS

Things are changing if the narrative of unrest at the Coast is anything to go by. Kenyans are showing eagerness to restore social order that was long distorted by political and State actors, although that comes at a price as social change involves huge costs.

But it is our institutions, particularly law enforcement authorities such as the police, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), and the Judiciary, that have repeatedly failed to protect the interest of Kenyans.

Before the elections, had the EACC and Judiciary exercised their mandate fully to ensure compliance with the Ethics and Public Officer Act by candidates seeking public offices, we would not have to contend with the dishonour of public office-holders being constantly in the news over corruption issues.

DEBATE DEBASED

It is deplorable that the debate in Parliament has degenerated into one of name-calling where both the government and the opposition who are complicit in the land mess have resorted to settling scores on the basis of who grabbed more acres of land than the other.

I hope Cabinet Secretary Charity Ngilu’s efforts are not politically motivated. She must be commended for the bold attempt to clean the land registry, a move that has seen corrupt cartels exposed.

To deal with land grabbing, what we want is a fair implementation of all land reports. Parliament should also consider formulating a reasonably fair and equitable Land Act to restore order in the sector.

Mr Wato, a former military officer, is a security officer with an international organisation ([email protected]).