The National Land Commission (NLC) has reserved 17 acres of public land in Kisii to facilitate the expansion of the Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital (KTRH), a project President William Ruto earlier this year called to be fast-tracked.
In a gazette notice, NLC Chairperson Gershom Otachi confirmed that the commission had issued a reservation order for the land parcel Kisii Municipality Block 3/678, which will grant the County Government of Kisii the care, control, and management of the land as trustee for KTRH.
Otachi noted that the reserved land shall only be used for the expansion of the hospital, as well as other hospital purposes, and the county government shall not transfer the ownership of the land without a green light from the NLC.
"In exercise of the powers conferred by sections 15,16,17, and 18 of the Land Act, 2012, and section 105 (2) of the Land Registration Act,2012, the National Land Commission hereby issues this reservation order to reserve and vest the care, control, and management of the land parcel no. Kisii Municipality Block 3/678," the notice read.
"The land measures approximately 6.765 hectares and is situated in Kisii County, as described in FR NO. 726/194 to the County Government of Kisii, as trustee for Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital, hereinafter referred to as 'The Management Body'," it added.
The Kisii County government shall, within the next 180 days, be required to draft a land use and management plan that will comply with the physical planning regulations, provide regulated access to community livelihoods, and uphold other constitutional values and principles.
The county government shall also ensure that 10 per cent of the land is under tree and vegetation cover, as well as safeguard fragile resources in the land, such as water bodies, forests, and wildlife habitats.
"Before undertaking any major development project, the management body shall conduct an Environmental and Social Assessment (ESIA) in line with the Environmental Management and Coordination Act, 1999 (EMCA)," the notice read.
The reservation comes almost eleven months after President Ruto expressed his dissatisfaction with the progress of the construction of the hospital's cancer centre and criticised the contractor for poor performance.
Ruto threatened to terminate the contract with the contractor if he did not finish the project on time.
“You will get a final warning. If you don’t pull up your socks, I am sorry, we will have to terminate this contract and get another contractor so that we can get this cancer centre running,” the president said.
“I will not allow this kind of thing to continue because you have been paid all the money required. There are no pending certificates, and there is no reason whatsoever for this project not to be complete,” he added.
