It is possible to deal with cartels preying on people’s private land

I learnt about the Parklands property demolition through the Nation Media Group website while away on a continental discussion on matters land.

Land tenure always takes centre stage in such discussions. The right to own, lease, and use land peacefully keeps civilisations going.

The need for recognition, documentation, and protection of land tenure rights is fundamental. Without this recognition, we end up with multiple claimants and disputes. Without documentation, one has no evidence of what they own and without protection, the rights can be defeated fraudulently or forcibly.

States that fail to protect land tenure rights risk facing social and economic instability that can, in extreme circumstances, foster political instability and threaten governments. So what happened in Parklands should attract top policy and political attention and systematic institutional redress.

I shared the Parklands news with a friend and told him, “This is now recurrent in our country. If it remains unaddressed, it’ll kill our property industry. But I hope that the high level publicity this case has attracted will compel action.”

Let us debunk some myth that I have heard from some people. The cartel involved has no ethnic, race, or colour boundaries. It only avoids those in power with the capacity to fight back. Everyone else is fair game. It operates like a club, taking people’s property with impunity.

It has established strategic contacts in all the areas critical to its operations. In Nairobi, for instance, it will have contacts in the Nairobi City county government, Survey of Kenya, the land administration offices at Ardhi House, the Land Registry, and the security agencies.

IMPERSONATE LAND OWNERS

It targets land registered in the names of people who have died, vacant plots, houses whose owners are away and hardly ever visit, and land for which leases have expired or are about to.

In rural counties, some of these groups target freehold land around urban areas, impersonate the real owners, and create parallel freehold titles after gazetting the legitimate title deeds lost. They then get new title deeds, sell the land, and leave the real owners dispossessed.

The clubs have an entire chain. There are people whose job is to scout for the properties of deceased persons. There are others who scout for vacant land/houses and search for official land reference numbers.

With the numbers, one is able to remove and destroy the legitimate documents and replace them with fraudulent ones. Legitimate owners only realise that something is wrong when they try to transact, find developments on their land, or are threatened with eviction.

The group members in Nairobi and the land administration offices assist with information on expired or about-to-expire leases and facilitate allotment letters for new allottees. Surveyors in the private sector, in liaison with officials in Survey of Kenya, generate deed plans to support new leases.

The Land Registry is usually the last bastion. New documents are presented and swiftly registered. In extreme cases, the clubs forge the documents, duplicate ownership, and hope to navigate around any consequences.

DEVELOP LAND

In all cases, the security agencies come in handy when victims go to report. Action is either not taken or delayed to allow the new owners to sell or develop the land. The many similar court cases in recent years is enough evidence of the damage the cartels have visited upon innocent Kenyans.

Yet the Land Act is clear that every leaseholder, and by implication, their beneficiaries, enjoys pre-emptive rights to renew their leases on expiry. This is the legal position. The cartels and unscrupulous insiders are subverting the law.

It is time for action. Prof Jacob Kaimenyi and the security chiefs can do a “Matiang’i” on this matter.
Members of these clubs are well known. With goodwill and determination, all of them would be easily identified, taken through due process, and if found culpable, made to account for their fraudulent actions. The ownership of the affected properties should revert to their owners or beneficiaries.

To enhance transparency in the renewal of leases, the Ministry of Lands should consider working through committee decisions and incorporating representatives of private sector lobby groups and the professional associations of lawyers and surveyors as observers.

Those who have benefited from irregularly acquired property must know that they have assumed the unenviable status of fugitives in their own country. They, and their families, will be forever watching their backs. Buyers beware!

Mr Mwathane is a surveyor. [email protected]. @mwathane