Give NLC chance to sort out land mess

Land was the biggest prize in Kenya’s fight for independence. Once Kenya gained independence, the British did not take the land with them to the United Kingdom. They left it all behind. However, 51 years later land in Kenya remains a source of internal conflict and political intrigue.

Since independence every government has been faced with the land problem; none has been able to resolve it with finality. With every new government, existing laws have been changed and new laws introduced, and the land problem continued to persist, deepen and fester.

The Independence government blamed the British government for the land problem. Retired President Moi’s government blamed the Independence government. The NARC government blamed the KANU government. The Jubilee government now finds fault with the NARC and Grand Coalition governments.

In February 2003 Honorable Raphael Tuju announced that the NARC government had issued an “executive order” taking over the Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC) from KANU. He was then Minister in charge of tourism. KANU was then the official opposition party. Its leader is now the sitting President.

KANU’s title for KICC had been issued under the law. The NARC Government cancelled the title outside the law through what it then called “an executive order”. No one stood to defend KANU, except KANU itself. KICC is today government property. It is ironical, and sad, that 11 years later, the President has issued directions, that are not so different from NARC’s executive order, to his Cabinet Secretary to revoke titles issued by a previous government under the law. Ironical, because the old adage — those who don’t learn from history are bound to repeat it — has been proved correct. These new directions are proof that the land reform policy of the NARC and Grand Coalition governments failed.

Sad, because it was thought and widely felt that the Land Chapter in the Constitution and the National Land Commission would be the panacea to Kenya’s land problems. The decision to deny the President and the National Executive any authority over land under the Constitution was deliberate.

Articles 67 and 249 of the Constitution establish the National Land Commission as a constitutional body independent of any person or authority. The Commission is only subject to the authority of the law and the courts.

The National Land Commission has the powers to investigate any past and present historical land injustices and to recommend appropriate corrective action. The Commission is given the power to recommend a national land policy to the government. It is this Commission that should have been allowed to deal substantively with all historical and present land injustices in Kenya, including Lamu, and recommend a long term, lawful, simple and consistent national land policy and measures to deal with such injustices throughout Kenya.

The land problem will not be fixed by yet another round of revocation of titles by yet another government. In any event, the Courts have in many cases decided that the government has no power under the Constitution or the law to revoke titles. If there is proof that a title was issued wrongly or illegally the Government can only move to court for an order of revocation of that title.

Insanity is doing the same thing time and again and expecting different results. Since 1963 the Executive has failed to adopt a consistent national land policy. It has failed to offer long lasting solutions to the land problem. Kenyans chose in 2010 to pass on the responsibility of resolving the land problem to the NLC. The Constitution and the Commission should be given a chance to walk Kenya and Kenyans out of this landmine.