Swazuri blames defunct city council for land woes in Nairobi

National Lands Commission Chairperson Mohammed Swazuri has faulted the defunct Nairobi City Council for failing to address land disputes within the county.

Swazuri said many land cases that have been forwarded to the commission so far for hearing and determination are as a result of the city’s failure to solve them.

Speaking at his National Land Commission offices in Nairobi on Friday 28th October 2016 during a hearing dispute pitting Sauti Sacco against Alfajiri Self-Help Group, the commission chairperson tasked the latter to explain how it managed to procure the land in question without undertaking a search.

”The blame is on the City Council which has exonerated itself twice from the records they have, we have to check whether they are authentic or not but the council is simply saying it never allocated the said piece of land to your client (Alfajiri),” he said.

Led by Lawyer David Oyata, the self-help group claimed that they had acquired a 30 acre piece of land from a developer in 2007 with the sole purpose of constructing a hospital to offer treatment to Kenyans suffering from HIV/AIDs.

Oyata alleged that a year later while planning to commence the project, his clients discovered that 15acre piece of land had been hived off by the Sauti Sacco limited.

”My client has agreed to share the 30 piece of land with the Sacco but wants the 15 acres be transferred back to them,” the lawyer told the commission.

However, Sauti Sacco termed Oyata’s remark as blatant falsehood arguing that it initially purchased 84 acres of land from Continental Developers in 1994 with a purpose of constructing houses for its 600 members, mainly civil servants.

Led by their lawyer Carolyne Nyagah, the Sacco told the commission that in 2007 it sold 50 acres of land to Greenspan developers to settle a Ksh12 million debt which it owed both Continental developers and the Cooperative bank.

Nyagah said that the land title number 824264, which Alfajiri self-help group claims to own, does not exist.

She explained to the commission that the title deed number 824264 was the original piece of land procured by Sauti Sacco but was subdivided into two parts namely 82/8759 and 82/8760 after the Sacco sold part of it to Greenspan developers to repay the Ksh12 million debt.

”The letter from the council dated 16th May 2008 states that the city council approved allocation of 824264 at its meeting held on 20th May 2008, showing that the said title 824264 had already been subdivided into two titles namely 82/8759 and 82/8760,” Nyagah explained.

Swazuri asked the self-help group to avail to the commission both the council’s approval along with the Ministry of Local Government showing that the piece of land was allocated to them.

He said the commission would give a final verdict on the matter once both parties serve his office with relevant documents before the end of next month.

The Sacco went to Court in 2007 after it emerged that the piece of land, which the Sacco members claim they bought in 1994 had been invaded by Alfajiri Self-Help Group who claimed to be the real owners of the 30-acre piece of land at Donholm estate in Nairobi.

The Sacco insists that the piece of land was bought from members’ contributions. The Sacco comprises of members mostly drawn from the media fraternity, government parastatals and 22 ministries.