NAIROBI, KENYA: The National Land Commission (NLC) has denied reports that it has defied a directive by President Uhuru Kenyatta on the Lamu land saga even as MPs seek to join the probe team.
NLC Chairman Muhammad Swazuri refuted claims his commission failed to revoke title deeds for some 22 firms that were irregularly allocated land in the county.
Mr Swazuri said the State Law office had given them all the 22 files for the firms' registration, saying investigations will be expedited even as the Lands committee joined the probe.
"It's not true that we defied the President's directive. The law gives him powers to issue such directives and in fact after four days, we will publish the list in newspapers seeking information," he said, adding that the commission will eventually take action as per the findings of the probe.
According to Swazuri, the commission has been mandated by law to investigate on its own volition or following a complaint, with a view to either regularising the allocation or revoking the titles.
The NLC boss was speaking at a Mombasa hotel during a retreat for the parliamentary committee on Lands and the NLC task force on the formulation of legislation on investigation and adjudication of complaints arising from historical land injustices.
Committee chairman Alex Mwiru said his team will visit Lamu on Thursday next week to get the views of residents over the revocation of titles and ongoing survey work being spearheaded by the Ministry of Lands.
Swazuri cautioned against populist declarations on issuance of land documents, saying the exercise will cost taxpayers millions of shillings and will also take time.
This was in apparent response to Lands Cabinet Secretary Charity Ngilu who has promised to produce 100,000 titles in two months.
"The work of allocating land is the only exercise which requires various professionals at different stages, from physical planners, surveyors, lawyers, registrars, and will incur a lot of expenditure. We should be wary of the statements we make in public and their consequences," he told MPs.
Last week, Lamu Woman Representative Shakila Abdallah accused Ngilu of violating the law and creating confusion after the CS dispatched over 70 surveyors to the region.
She claimed the exercise was irregular since planners and locals had not been involved.
She added it was misleading to promise 100,000 titles in two months to a county whose total population is 101,000, according to a 2009 census.
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