Uhuru visits Ardhi House unannounced

By Cyrus Ombati and Faith Rono

Nairobi, Kenya: President Uhuru Kenyatta paid a surprise visit to the Ministry of Lands headquarters at Ardhi House where services have been halted for 10 days to undertake reforms.

This followed an order by lands Cabinet Secretary Charity Ngilu to suspend transactions for 10 days, starting Monday, for audit.

Witnesses said the president arrived in four cars at about 3.30pm and went to the registry on ground floor where he stayed for about 20 minutes and left.

He was received by Ngilu. National Lands Commission (NLC) officials were caught off guard as they were informed of his presence after he had arrived.

“He said he will be back after the two weeks period to witness the progress. He did not visit the commission offices and we do not know why. He has a right to visit any office,” said a staff at the ministry.

Only staff with identification documents being allowed into Ardhi House.

Members of the public who said they had been informed to go there for services were turned away by police.

More than 30 university students that the minister brought in to carry out audit worked in shifts with the last group leaving at midnight on Monday.

Armed police officers were placed on fourth, sixth and ninth floors that house the commission offices.

Ngilu said the move was to facilitate reforms at the central registry. She launched the exercise and invited the media to witness it on Monday.

The commission Thursday sued Ngilu and sought orders to stop her from interfering with their operations.

NLC termed illegal the shutdown that effectively halts issuance of title deeds countrywide.

Commission vice chair Abigael Mukolwe insisted offices would open and declared if any of their files go missing, the minister will be held responsible.

“We are still shocked on why she is doing this and hope nothing wrong goes therein,” said Ms Mukolwe.

Commission officials said they are also considering moving out of Ardhi House as part of measures to stop the minister from interfering with their operations.

Ngilu, in a newspaper advert announced the department would be closed for 10 working days starting Monday, to review central land registries and services would resume on May 19.

Ngilu had declared Ardhi House will be closed for two weeks starting Monday to enable them conduct an audit and reorganization of land registries.

“To realize these objectives, the Lands Directorate has set up a programme of re-engineering our business processes with a view of reducing the turn-around time on service delivery,” the notice by Cabinet Secretary Charity Ngilu read.

The banking hall will also be closed which will bring several operations to a halt as it is key to many land matters and payments.

Registrations of land documents, searches, stamp duty payments, land rent payment and application for valuations and processing will not be done during the period.

Other affected services, according to Ngilu include payments of allotments, application for subdivision of land, settlement programmes and land adjudication.

According to the advert, the ministry is exercising its power to facilitate efficient land administration and management entrusted to it.

This means the issuance of title deeds countrywide has been suspended.

NLC had moved to the Supreme Court to seek an advisory opinion regarding its mandate and the Lands ministry and on land administration and management. The opinion is yet to be delivered.

The development is the latest in a standoff between the minister and the commission over who should be in charge of many crucial matters in the docket.

Experts say the ongoing conflict between the ministry of Lands and the National Land Commission is causing huge economic losses to the public.

The experts say despite the fact that a taskforce that was to develop land regulations had been gazetted two years ago the government has failed to develop regulations to operationalise the National Land Commission Act 2012 and Land Registration Act 2012.

The commission was allocated Sh652million to carry out its activities in the fiscal year 2014/2015, according to the estimates.

The power tussle between the two started last October after Mrs Ngilu transferred gazetted officers — former Commissioner of Lands Zablon Mabea, Chief Lands Registrar Wambugu Ngatia and Director of Survey Euphantus Murage — a role NLC chair Dr Mohamed Swazuri felt was not hers.

The infighting has stalled land transfers, leases and the signing of title deeds at the ministry.