Karen land saga casts dark shadow over Jubilee

The invasion and acquisition of the multi-billion shillings property in Karen, with the alleged connivance of state officials, has left many numb with consternation.

Experts now say the Karen saga has exposed a new paradigm of brazen capture of state organs, officials and resources to defraud citizens, a departure from past mega scams where crooks took advantage of their offices to defraud the state.

If confirmed, the 134-acres land grab would be the biggest single heist of private land in independent Kenya, whose audacity and the high profile list of alleged beneficiaries is still unraveling.

Experts say unless resolved quickly and decisively, the Karen affair has potential to shake the Jubilee Government to the core, in the same way Goldenberg did to the Kanu administration and Anglo Leasing to the Narc regime. The two yet to be resolved scams remain conspicuous ugly scars on Kenya’s collective psyche.

Audacious grabbing of privately owned prime properties would seem to introduce a new paradigm, and a worrying precedent.

Abdulkadir Khalif, the chairman of the Survey, Settlement and Adjudication Committee of the National Land Commission (NLC), says the NLC was still studying the Karen affair to understand what it was, who did what, when and the legality or otherwise of those actions.

Mr Khalif said if allegations of fraud are proved true, then “many big heads must roll fast, otherwise people will make certain conclusions”.

“If the allegations of fraud are true, this Karen thing becomes bigger and dangerous in its implications than Goldenberg, Anglo Leasing and Karura Forest combined,” Khalif told The Standard on Sunday.

“The past scams were bad enough, but they involved defrauding the State and the public by individuals taking advantage of their positions. Unless proved otherwise, Karen has the hallmarks of individuals capturing state organs and using them to defraud fellow citizens. People must have faith in national institutions. The alternative is anarchy.”

Awkward position

The Karen land grab comes at a time two former Cabinet ministers in charge of the Lands docket – Amos Kimunya and James Orengo – are shuttling to and from Criminal Investigations Department (CID) offices and court corridors.

Mr Orengo, now the Kisumu Senator, and immediate former Commissioner for Lands, Mr Zablon Mabea, are facing questions in connection with the controversial allocations of huge tracts of land in Lamu in 2012. The Lamu allocations allegedly occurred at a time there was a Cabinet moratorium against allocations of public land imposed in February 2012.

 Orengo, who earned his national stripes agitating for civil liberties and the rule of law in the 90s, finds himself in an awkward position of a suspected accomplice in the Lamu land saga, and a whistle blower in the Karen affair. Mr Kimunya is already in court over land dealings dating back to when he was minister for Lands (2003-2006).

The roles of the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development and those of the NLC have also come into sharp focus. Questions have been raised about whether key actors exercised the duty of care commensurate with their oath of office.

Ibrahim Mwathane, the Chair of the Land Development and Governance Institute (LDGI), has said the two institutions are funded with public funds and officials risked imprisonment for taking land transactions casually.

Soiled reputation

“The law is clear on the mandates of the two institutions and officials are under official oath to uphold the law in their actions. Proximity to politicians and political brokers accords you no immunity under the new Constitution. It will not shield careless actors from imprisonment, torment and ignominy of court appearances, soiled reputations, careers and distress for their families,” Mwathane warned.

Mr Mwathane spoke when LDGI released the 15th score card on land reforms since the promulgation of the new Constitution in 2010.

The score card painted a grim picture that 71 per cent of respondents interviewed said the much hyped flurry of activities by Lands Cabinet Secretary Charity Ngilu had not resulted in improved service delivery in the land sector. Presenting the findings collected from 36 counties, LDGI official Mwenda Makathimo said the conclusions of the score card were not surprising as majority of the respondents indicated that the government had neglected public participation in its programmes in the land sector.