Members of Parliament (MPs) have raised alarm over a worrisome trend at the Kenyan coast that could see Mombasa lose its island status due to grabbing of portions of the Indian Ocean.
The National Assembly Committee on Environment and Natural Resources on Sunday established that portions of the sea-land surrounding the island have fallen into the hands of land grabbers.
"Investors have grabbed the riparian land and encroached on the ocean, reclaiming what used to be sea-land to put up structures," stated the committee chair Kereke Mbuiki.
Mbiuki and his team had toured the coastal city after receiving information that a number of the grabbers had obtained ownership documents and already reclaimed the ocean land.
[caption caption="Maara MP Kereke Mbiuki speaks to the press after a past assessment visit as chair of the Environment and Natural Resources Committee"]
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The MPs further faulted Governor Hassan Joho and his administration of dumping garbage into the sea after decommissioning the city's main dumpsite.
"We are perturbed to see garbage being pushed into the open sea.
"We are here to see for ourselves and ensure that this messy affair is stopped once and for all," he added.
The Environment committee revealed that two firms operating around the Kibarani dumpsite had produced ownership documents for the land.
The Water Resources Management Authority (WARMA) had, however, flagged the area and advised against further developments on the portion.
The authority's technical manager Boniface Mwaniki disputed the validity of the licenses held by the firms purported to have been issued by the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) and ordered a fresh survey.
[caption caption="Excavators conducting a reclamation process after the closure of Mombasa's Kibarani dumpsite"]
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