Kilifi County Governor Gideon Mung’aro on Wednesday, May 31, suspended the issuance of buildings construction permits after an uproar over the grabbing of riparian land.
The governor was responding to concerns by residents who held protests in Malindi town on Wednesday morning accusing tycoons of grabbing riparian land along the ocean shore.
Speaking to the media, Mung’aro warned grabbers of the land that their days were numbered and clarified that only the government will give permits to the affected areas.
“We shall not issue construction permits to individuals who want to build along riparian land and we shall also work with Lands officials to ensure no title is issued for such lands.
“Such properties are not owned by individuals and it is the county government that will issue permits for temporary structures but not title deeds and we will not approve plans on such lands,” he stated.
On her part, Kilifi County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Lands Jane Maiki Kamto explained that the county will not allow riparian land to be invaded by land grabbers.
Kamto, however, assured other investors that the county government strives to ensure a conducive business environment.
“Land grabbers have illegal title deeds because they were issued without following due process and riparian land belongs to the government,” she explained.
At the same time, Magarini Member of Parliament (MP) Harry Kombe noted that it was shocking that the Ministry of Lands could issue title deeds on riparian land, a move frowned upon by the law.
“There are officers from the Ministry of Land who are corrupt and they are forging documents using signatures of retired officers to issue illegal title deeds to unsuspecting people and land grabbers,” he posed.
The MP noted that he will raise the matter in Parliament to unearth a reason for the illegal allocation.
On the other hand, Timothy Mwambogo, a politician in Malindi urged the governor to take action against the land grabbers, adding that the riparian land was earmarked for public parks in programs being implemented by the Kilifi County Government and the World Bank.
“Which law allows someone to trespass on another person’s land without the involvement of the authorities? Land grabbing should not be allowed in Malindi and investors should not be harassed by the grabbers,” he stated.
Mwambogo added that land grabbers were scaring away investors hence leading to job losses among the residents.
The land-grabbing allegations in Kilifi emerged at a time when the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) had intensified its fight against the grabbing of public property.
For instance, the Commission on May 11, recovered property worth Ksh52 million from a couple that fraudulently acquired a prime piece of land in Nyali, Mombasa County.
While delivering her judgment, Lady Justice Nelly Matheka of the Mombasa Environment and Land established that the parcel of land was grabbed.
