The State is collaborating with the Nakuru County Government in resolving long-standing land ownership disputes and in expediting the issuance of title deeds in a move aimed at addressing heightened incidences of insecurity and community conflicts occasioned by perennial land disputes in the region.
Cabinet Secretary for Interior and National Administration Kipchumba Murkomen said the efforts aim at bringing to an end the perennial land conflicts that have been bedevilling the region and at helping promote economic empowerment for the residents.
The CS stated that the Government was employing a multi-agency approach to oversee land adjudication processes, which involves verifying land claims and ensuring accurate land records with a focus on transparency and fairness.
While noting that Molo, Subukia, Naivasha and Narok were among the sub-counties hardest hit by land ownership wrangles, the Cabinet Secretary assured that the government was committed to resolving the challenges, including addressing historical grievances and protecting residents’ land ownership rights, in addition to ensuring a smooth and fair land titling process in the region.
Addressing members of the public at the Rift Valley Regional Headquarters ahead of the Jukwaa la Usalama meeting at the Nakuru Dog Section Unit grounds, the Cabinet Secretary indicated that the process of resolving land ownership disputes involved identifying and securing essential public amenities like schools, government offices, health centers and markets, among others, within the affected settlements, ensuring continued community access.
Most of the wrangles revolving around land ownership in the region stem from the emergence of multiple survey maps, delayed issuance of title deeds, land grabbing activities and double allocations.
The CS underscored the need to discourage the culture of rushing land cases to courts because they drag on for a long time before they are solved, adding that community elders were well placed to deal with such cases because they understand land dynamics better.
“Even as we wait for settlement through alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, state interventions, court processes and community engagement, we encourage locals to take measures that resolve land issues peacefully and amicably,” he advised.
Mr Murkomen noted that many of the conflicts were rooted in historical grievances, with ancestral claims predating formal land registration. He acknowledged that the increasing value of land in the county had also fuelled tensions, making disputes even more volatile.
While acknowledging that land disputes were a matter of concern that needed to be resolved urgently as they posed a security threat, Murkomen put on notice networks of land fraud syndicates that have been manipulating official land titles, facilitating massive land fraud, and defrauding Kenyans of their rightful land, vowing that their days are numbered as those found culpable will face the full force of the law.
He warned that it will no longer be business as usual for those individuals involved in land frauds that have led to people being dispossessed of their land and rendered squatters while heightening incidents of insecurity in the region.
According to Murkomen, the Jukwaa la Usalama had given government officers, especially in the security and administration sector, a new impetus, noting that the majority of them were now discharging their duties with a lot of enthusiasm.
He further stated that Jukwaa la Usalama was a platform for government officers to interact with the people in the grassroots, listen and offer solutions to whatever challenges they are facing.
The objective of the Jukwaa la Usalama, he said, is to assess the security situation and engage leaders, security teams, National Government Administrative Officers (NGAOs) and peace committees on strategies to enhance security, peace and cohesion.
It also presents an opportunity for the government to get feedback directly from the people on government services, among others.
The CS was happy that the enhanced registration of persons and the accelerated issuance of national IDs under the ongoing Jukwaa la Usalama programme were yielding positive results, adding that the government had deployed sufficient infrastructure and personnel to ensure that the enhanced registration exercise went on smoothly.
The initiative, he added, was ensuring all eligible citizens access to essential government services through the timely issuance of national IDs.
“In Nakuru we are targeting 100,000 new applications for ID Cards. I urge all Kenyans who have reached the age of 18 to come forward and register for their national identity cards. We are in the process of opening new registration offices in Kuresoi North, Subukia and Rongai Sub-Counties,” Murkomen said.
While announcing that refugees in Nakuru will also benefit from the initiative through the issuance of alien identity cards, the Cabinet Secretary emphasized that the national ID was a vital document required to access key government services such as Taifa Care through the Social Health Authority (SHA) and the Affordable Housing Programme.
He reiterated the government’s commitment to restoring education in the banditry-affected regions of the North Rift, terming school reconstruction a cornerstone of its peace and security agenda.
Mr Murkomen said that the joint National Police Service and Kenya Defense Forces ‘Operation Maliza Uhalifu’ North Rift that kicked off in February 2023 had effectively dealt with banditry and restored security in the North Rift counties of Turkana, West Pokot, Baringo, Laikipia, Samburu and Elgeyo/Marakwet.
The security operation in the North Rift, he went on, had a significant impact in restoring peace, adding that the government was determined to restore peace in the North Rift and all other parts of the country that had witnessed disturbance of peace.
Mr Murkomen pledged that the government will intensify its crackdown on illicit brew and counterfeit alcohol, vowing that the fight will not relent. He directed National Government Administration Officers (NGAOs) and the National Police Service (NPS) to launch immediate operations targeting illegal brew dens and apprehend perpetrators.
He said illicit brew and fake alcohol remained a cross-cutting menace that must be urgently addressed and issued a stern warning to politicians and security officers involved in abetting of drug and substance abuse, saying they risked prosecution.
He said that politicians will not be allowed to intimidate officers or harass the police, chiefs and assistant chiefs when suspects are arrested and told officers who collude with criminals that they would also not be spared.
The Cabinet Secretary expressed deep concern over the growing trade and consumption of cannabis sativa in the county and urged the public to cooperate with security officers in eradicating the vice.
He denied claims of a rift between the National Police Service Commission (NPSC) and the National Police Service (NPS) regarding the management of human resource functions and said the purported rift had been blown out of proportion, adding that there has been a cordial and collaborative working relationship between the Commissions, enabling the seamless execution of each agency’s constitutional mandate.
The CS at the same time vowed that he will ensure that impunity of criminal gangs in Nakuru comes to an end at whatever cost and put criminal gangs on notice, saying the government will spare no efforts to neutralize them.
“I’m sounding a warning to all criminal gangs out there to either disband or face the full force of the law,” Murkomen said.
The CS said the gangs undermine the country’s peace and lead youth down the path of criminality, saying leaders who will be found misusing the youth to form gangs to achieve a political end will be prosecuted regardless of their political affiliation or influence.
On fishing at Lake Nakuru, the Cabinet Secretary expressed concern that though the fish from the Lake had been declared by various research agencies as unfit for human consumption due to high traces of toxic contaminants from the sewage system, farms, settlements and dumpsites on the water body’s catchment, unscrupulous fishmongers were sneaking them into markets within Nakuru town, Naivasha, Nairobi, Kericho, and Bomet, among other areas where unsuspecting members of the public buy and consume the fish.
He said illegal fishing at the water body had increased human-wildlife conflicts, citing several reported cases of attacks on humans by hippos, adding that the practice was also a threat to endangered wildlife species at Lake Nakuru National Park and Bird Sanctuary.
The park is home to endangered black and white rhinos and rare bird species which are vulnerable to poachers posing as fishermen.
By Esther Mwangi and Lucy Mukui
