Mombasa land buyers told to pay again in NLC ruling on 3,000-acre farm

All investors who purchased parcels of land at the 3,000-acre farm owned by a private firm in Bamburi, Kisauni, Mombasa County, will have to pay for them again.

This is after a state land agency ruled that all non-indigenous individuals shall pay up to Sh500,000 for each 50 by 100 parcel of land, depending on the location of the plot.

However, the National Land Commission (NLC) committee on historical land injustices stated that indigenous squatters will be allocated a total of 300 acres free of charge.

The farm, commonly referred to as Thaathini, covers Kashani MN/II/360, Gandini MN/II/829, and Maunguja MN/II/546 and is occupied by at least 40,000 people.

Over the years, the dispute over its ownership has led to bloody conflicts and evictions between representatives of Thaathini Development Company Limited and squatters.

Most of the squatters sold the land to third parties. But the NLC ruling means that those buyers will have to pay Thaathini almost the same amount they paid the squatters.

In Kashani, NLC says there are 21 churches, eight mosques, five public schools, five community schools, seven private schools, two public health centres, three private health facilities, and four orphanage homes.

The committee, headed by NLC commissioner Prof James Tuitoek, made the verdict after hearing petitions both said, and declared that the Thaathini legally bought the land in 1979.

“That individuals who are not indigenous/local residents of the area be allowed to regularise their occupation by entering into individual purchase agreements with Thathini Development Company Limited. The purchase price shall range between Sh400,000 and Sh500,000 (50x100) depending on the location of the parcel,” they recommended.

The verdict was made on August 11 this year after public hearings. NLC stepped in after the squatters exhausted all appeals in the court and eviction orders issued against them. 

Mr Gabriel Tella, Mr Ziro Mwangeki, Patrick Ogego, David Nguzo, Peter Taraza, Ms Dorris Katana, Mr Masiwi Kibwana, Mr Nicholas Katana, and Mr Kahindi Baya represented the residents during the hearings held in Mombasa County.

Chairman of the board of Thathini Development Company, Mr Githende Gachanja, and secretary Ms Jane Mbugua also appeared before the NLC.

The verdict comes as reports of fresh land invasions by squatters emerged at the Coast, blamed on the recent government announcement that it had set aside Sh1.4 billion to acquire land for the landless.

Land activists said that the state's plan to acquire land for squatters and the delay to implement the programme in a transparent manner have fuelled anxiety and a fresh wave of invasion in Mombasa County and across the Coast region.

Land activist Mr Nagib Shamsan told Senate Speaker Amason Kingi and Cabinet Secretaries Hassan Joho and Salim Mvurya, who have been assigned by President William Ruto to spearhead the squatter resettlement programme, to make the process transparent so as to manage anxiety and restore public confidence.

The commission ruled that all public institutions within the parcels of land should be allocated the land they occupy free of charge to be held by the relevant public agencies.

It asked the Ministry of Interior and National Administration, Mombasa County Government, and the land company for the commission’s recommendations to be implemented through appropriate planning and surveying of the land to regularise ownership.

“The commission further recommends that this determination be adopted by the court as a judgement of the court and that the matter be deemed fully and finally settled. Accordingly, any party with pending legal proceedings relating to the three parcels of land should take immediate steps to withdraw the cases,” said the commission in the ruling delivered on August 11 this year.

Other commissioners in the committee are Esther Murugi and Tiyah Galgalo.

In 2014, the commission proposed that the land company allocate 1,000 acres to the squatters to resolve the dispute, but the mediation process collapsed after many squatters rejected the process.

NLC held public hearings where squatters and representatives of the landowner made presentations early this year. The commission also visited the disputed parcels as it investigated the matter.