Kilifi to register disputed land in favour of community

 

The Kilifi ranch in Ganze will be registered as a community land.

Kilifi County Chief Officer for Land James Nguzo said this will address the rampant conflicts between residents and directors of the Kilifi Ranching Company Limited.

Nguzo on Saturday said the process will start this week.

For more than 30 years, the 103.6 hectare ranch has been the centre of a dispute between the ranching company who claimed to own the land and the locals.

In September last year, Kenya Wildlife Service officers fired several bullets in the air to disperse locals who were driving away herds of cattle belonging to an investor. The ranch is adjacent to Tsavo National Park.

The Land chief officer said the land had not been registered.

“Kilifi ranch exists only in people’s minds. In the land records there is nothing like Kilifi ranch. This was only a proposal that is now time barred and as the custodian of community land, we have agreed as a county government to register it as a community land using the name Gede/Mitangani community land as you suggested. Anyone claiming to have a title for this land is a conman,” said Nguzo.

Christopher Tongoi, one of the directors of the Kilifi ranching company and former councillor Mitangani ward, confirmed that the company does not have a title deed for the ranch.

Tongoi said the idea of forming the group ranch was to spur development and ward off land grabbers.

“Some of you went to the regional commissioner over the ownership of land. This land has no title deed and we formed the ranching company for everyone to join. We had no ill motive,” said Tongoi.

For over 20 years, different investors have leased acres of the ranch to graze their livestock.

The investors have been paying millions to the directors of the ranching company.

Gede acting assistant chief Stephen Thethe said both the investors and the directors of the company have failed to produce lease agreements to ascertain the land ownership documents used to lease the land.

Mitangani senior chief Joseph Mwachanze urged government officials to keep off the land.

Mwachanze blamed a senior Kilifi county government officer for depriving the locals their right.

“When you go back to your office kindly ask this officer to leave this land alone. Those who claim to be directors of the company are not from this area and are the ones benefitting from this land while the locals languish in poverty. It is unheard of for a government officer to be active in such matters. He ought to be an ex officio member but for this officer, he is the lead member and controls everything,” said Mwachanze.

The county government initiated the process to register the land after Gede sub location acting assistant chief Stephen Thethe wrote to the county government over the numerous pleas by the community to have the land registered.   BY THE STAR