Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 1268312,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1268312/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 269,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Kaloleni, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Paul Katana",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "changed was in 1965. It is an outdated law. As you know, land issues are very emotive, especially at the Coast. This rating system will give our county governments an opportunity to have their own source of revenue. It will also assist because many large chunks of land at the Coast have been lying idle due to absent landlords, which does not benefit the national Government or county governments. This Bill will give an opportunity to county governments and the national Government to collect revenue from idle lands and any other pieces of land that are within their jurisdictions. Hon. Temporary Speaker, with the shift from manual to digitization of properties, many people lost land. This also gave an opportunity to some few individuals… I will give you an example of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR). Some parcels of land were overvalued and some undervalued because there was no uniformity in valuation of land in our country. This Bill will give confidence to the investors because if they want to invest in Nairobi, they will know the rates to pay. And if they want to invest in Mombasa, they will know what they are supposed to do. This will also deal with property brokers in the country. Many people have been conned because there is no consistency with the law. I want to thank the Chairperson and the Committee. The National Land Commission gave us a very good input on this. The Ministry of Lands, Public Works, Housing and Urban Development with the Ardhisasa platform will now have an opportunity to make sure that every land is put into use. I have also taken note that most of the land in the rural areas is not yet adjudicated. We will look for an amendment to make sure that it is not subjected to high rates. I will look for a way to bring an amendment to accommodate agricultural land to cushion farmers. The county government should not give rates to these agricultural lands. We need to motivate our farmers so as to have food security. This Bill has come at the right time. I hope my colleagues will give their input and pass this Bill because it is timely and can really be a game changer for the local authorities. Governors gave their input in the Committee. If there is anybody who wants to bring an amendment, they can approach the Committee so that we can have a win-win situation. After the passage of this Bill, I encourage the county assemblies to pass concurrent by-laws so that both the national and county governments speak in one voice on land valuation. For a very long time, people have manipulated valuation of properties. Banks have lost a lot because the valuation given is incorrect. With this Bill, valuers will be very careful with the kind of valuation they will do in every county. The banks will be safe with this Bill. With these few remarks, I support the Bill."
}