By Juma Kwayera

The draft national land policy, which the Cabinet has approved for debate in Parliament, promises to be controversial, with two groups spoiling for a fight.

The brewing debate has the makings of the row over constitutional reforms, which have dragged on for nearly two decades, sapping up huge amounts of financial and human resources.

As has been the case with various controversial Bills that have divided the voting in Parliament along ethnic and political party lines, there are pointers the land policy will test the integrity of the House.

Already, there are fears that some MPs are dead set to scuttle the policy at the behest of the rich.

The Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs Mutula Kilonzo told The Standard on Sunday that he was aware of the jitters building up ahead of the tabling of the sessional paper in the House.

"It is true some of the recommendations will be difficult to push through Parliament. But we are prepared to find a solution. For us to succeed, we should not put things in a small bottle," Mutula says of the National Land Policy that has unsettled large landowners.

Acknowledging the radical nature of the policy, the minister who confirmed it is expected in Parliament soon, says, "I am a landowner myself and I am ready to comply with what Parliament decides."

As demonstration of the gravity of the land question, the Land Sector Non-State Actors (LSNSA), a civil society lobby, supports the land policy and terms the draft as an ideal instrument to "ensure meaningful redress of intractable long-term issues under Agenda Four of the National Accord and Reconciliation Act 2008."

Speaking during last Wednesday’s Prime Minister’s Time, Raila Odinga, said the sessional paper on land would be tabled in the House before it breaks for Christmas. A check with the ministry revealed that the sessional paper is ready and would be acted upon at Lands Minister James Orengo’s discretion.

An under-secretary at the Ministry of Lands acknowledges the contents of the policy are radical.

"There is already strong opposition building up from those who own large tracts of land, the policy was designed to ameliorate the plight of peasants and other Kenyans who will use the land productively," the under-secretary, who declined to be named, says.

The policy acknowledges weaknesses in the current land laws, which it blames for theft of public land and sets out to seal the legal loopholes that have resulted in hordes of landless people.

The draft seeks to impose hefty penalties on idle land as a means of maximising agricultural output and increasing food security.

It also makes a strong pitch for land re-distribution, with the possibility that the State might repossess large tracts of land owned by absentee landlords to settle the landless.

The policy makes drastic recommendations, which if implemented, says Assistant Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs William Cheptumo, would result in drastic political and ethnic realignments.

Cheptumo, who represents Baringo North in Rift Valley, where land is a sensitive issue, and which has witnessed some of the most brutal clashes over resources, predicts the debate on the national land policy would be divisive.

The centrepiece of the policy is redressing historical injustices, which form the gist of the accord between PNU and ODM; following disputed 2007 presidential election results.

If passed, the draft makes a pitch for enactment of a Land Registration Act that recognises and protects "all legitimate rights and interests in land held."

It recommends the repeal of the Land Adjudication Act and Land Consolidation Act, just as will be the land registration provisions of the Registration of Titles Act and the Registered Land Act.

The move will adversely affect owners of huge tracts of land, especially at the Coast and Rift Valley, where ownership disputes resulting from land alienation are as old as colonial influence on national lifestyle.

"The intention of the policy is noble. But we should not create policies that will further strain community relations.

The draft land policy should uphold the sanctity of the title deed," says Cheptumo.

But LSNSA says, "The land question has to be addressed given the strong demand from Kenyans for land reform, which past governments have consistently failed to deliver. We can therefore not allow land grabbers to frustrate land reforms…"