Kilifi County starts land clinics to address issues of land problems in the region

With the increasing land disputes in Kilifi County, the county government has set up land clinics to have locals educated on the importance procedures to own their land. – By Ramadhan Kambi.

The county has carried a number of sensitization programs in Ganze, Magarini, Kaloleni, Malindi, Kilifi South, Kilifi North and Rabai sub counties. 

In Ndarako, Ganze for example, the locals claimed that some residents formed a ranch and leased the land to business men and livestock traders from Mombasa and that they were reaping huge sums of money from the land yet they did not have a title deed. 

County Chief Officer in charge of land James Nguzo who led the land clinic in Ndarako said anyone claiming to have a title for the more than 100 ha of land in that region is a conman since the county has not issued any title in that area. 

During the clinic, the locals were taken through the community land registration process and were issued with forms to fill incases they want to have their land registered. 

The county promised to register it as a community land. 

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

“We are going to end this problem of land ownership in this region. The only way is to register this land as a community. That process should start immediately,” said Mr Nguzo. 

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. 

 “There is no Kilifi ranch and this 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. 

As a county government, we have agreed to now register it as a community land using the name Gede/Mitangani community land as you suggested,” said Nguzo. 

According to Mr Christopher Tongoi, one of the directors of the Kilifi ranching company, they have no title deed for the ranch. 

Mr Tongoi once served as a councilor for Mitangani location in the defunct Kilifi County council. 

“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. 

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.