Hundreds of households in Suba South constituency have expressed fears that the government intends to evict them from their land to pave way for setting up of a prison facility.
The residents expressed concerns that the national government is using the youths at the National Youth Service (NYS) camp in Labwe Valley to evict them from their land to pave way for construction of a prison.
They complained that the NYS officers had started erecting beacons to demarcate their boundaries but had encroached into their parcels of lands.
Their concerns stem from the government plans to relocate Kenya Prisons in Homa Bay town to the Lambwe Valley.
They claimed NYS officials were now evicting them from their farms without providing them alternative land nor compensation and that they were not given notice.
The families led by senior citizens Walter Onyango and Enos Ochieng said that they have been living on the land since 1972.
Onyango said the NYS erected beacons for demarcating its land in 1986 and there has not been any conflict.
“Most of us have stayed here for a long time and we wonder why the government through the NYS claims ownership of the land. The beacons they put encouraged into our lands despite us having lived here since 1972,” Onyango said.
Speaking to the media at Nyadenda Village in Suba South constituency, the residents said that the encroachments contravened their rights.
“What has happened here shows that the NYS land expands like Lake Victoria whose water keeps stretching during rainy seasons. They expect me to demolish my home and relocate,” he said.
Ochieng claimed the evictions was likely aimed at creating space for relocation Homa Bay Prison to the area.
He asked the government to come with a better way of getting land for building a prison. He said they should be compensated and allocated alternative land.
“The plans to relocate Homa Bay Prison to the NYS land here should not interfere with us as residents. NYS should not wrongly evict us to create land for the prison,” Ochieng said.
Human rights defenders Evance Oloo and Michael Kojo expressed concerns that the families were going to be evicted without any public participation.
Oloo told Lands Cabinet Secretary Alice Wahome to intervene in the matter and protect the residents’ land.
“Let the Cabinet Secretary Lands Alice Wahome ensure they demarcated proper NYS boundaries to avoid chaos and ensure residents don’t lose their land,” Oloo said.
Kojo said they are ready to go to court if the government fails to address the matter amicably.
“These people were not given any notice as the law requires. We are giving the government seven days to resolve this matter lest we go to court.” Oloo said.
Suba Central Deputy County Commissioner Naftali Kojo said he had not received the complaint.
“I cannot comment about the matter because it has not been reported in my office,” the administrator said.
By Davis Langat
