Baringo Central MP Sammy Mwaita accused of allocating himself judiciary land

The construction of a law court in Marigat, Baringo County has been delayed by questions on the ownership of the land earmarked for its establishment. This emerged after the county government wrote to the Judiciary and disclosed that the land had been allocated to Baringo Central MP Sammy Mwaita.

“It has come to our attention as the Lands department that the said parcel is disputed. The parcel was given to one Sammy Mwaita way back in 1998 and he has all the ownership documents,” reads part of the one-page letter signed by Edwin Riamangura, the CEC in charge of Lands, Housing and Urban Development.

The letter dated February 28, directed the Judiciary to make arrangements to amicably deliberate on the matter including seeking for an alternative piece of land for the same purpose.

Alternative Land

The letter was written to Kabarnet Principal Magistrate Samson Temo and not copied to any other person. Mr Mwaita is a former Lands commissioner. However, the Judiciary has demanded that plot revert to the Government.

“The Department of Lands should look for alternative land for the current owner because this remains Judiciary land. Let it remain clear that we are not going to accept anything short of this,” said Mr Temo during a visit to the disputed land.

Bishop Daniel Chemon of the Court Users Association said the plot that is adjacent to other government entities like Marigat Police Station and the DO’s office had been allocated to an individual and should be repossessed.

“Citizens require Government services closer to them and the only option to achieve this is to return the land in question. The National Land Commission should decide on the issue before it gets out of control,” he said.

But reacting, Mwaita said he did not grab the land but was allocated like any other Kenyan and asked aggrieved parties to follow the right procedure in addressing the issue. “There is nothing secret in this; I applied for the property and I was issued with relevant ownership documents. I have been paying rates and nobody has raised any concern,” said Mwaita.