The threat of land cartels still looms large in sector

Land transactions are even at the best of times, a maze that one needs to navigate carefully. The safest thing to do is get a lawyer to go through the labyrinth for you.

In come the cartels and the previous complicated maze becomes an impenetrable swamp littered with corruption, forgeries, outright theft and even murder. You would think that conveyancers (property lawyers) have it easy; they are learned, after all.

But that is not the case as our resident property lawyer shows on the facing page, reporting on how cartels have got conveyancers chasing shadows. Sample this: “The cartels access the paperwork and establish who the genuine land owners are before transacting fraudulently... the bogus land brokers also engage experts who forge signatures of senior land officers and print fake green cards. In some cases, some land officers who dance to the tune of the brokers have been prosecuted.” (read Property Law for the details)

A chat with one of the major developers a while back showed that the problem is not not faced only by the ‘small buyers’ but even the mega developers who have the financial, legal and expert clout to navigate these corridors.

Cartels forge your documents, walk into land registries and swap your file for theirs. When you try conducting a search your details are nowhere to be found, and your land has a new owner.

Land cartels do not operate in shadowy, smoke-filled corridors. Nor do they walk around in dusty trench courts. They are suave businessman with contacts in all the ‘right’ places. They know the ins and outs and defeating them will not be easy. But hopefully it will be done soon.