Entry Instance

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

{
    "id": 1278204,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1278204/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 224,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Aldai, UDA",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Marianne Kitany",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you very much, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I stand in support of this Motion. First, allow me to thank Hon. Mwenje for bringing up this matter on land issues and squatters. The truth of the matter is that Kenyans have had issues with land for a long time, ever since Independence or even before Independence. It is the very reason the National Land Commission (NLC) was set up when the 2010 Constitution was being promulgated. There was a feeling that the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development was not able to tackle land matters that had come up. The NLC was tasked with, among other issues, to settle squatters. However, it is still a problem up to today. We still experience the issue. That is why we have a Motion in this House today, in the year 2023, when this office has been around for about 13 years. It begs the question: When then will these issues ever be sorted out? If Kenya is not home to the people called squatters, where else can be their home? I stand to speak here because of the community I come from, that is, Aldai Constituency. They may not be called squatters, but they do not have title deeds. Any time, they can also be evicted from the very land they have called home for centuries. It is the land they have buried their relatives and also invested in. They cannot even use that property to get loan facilities from banks like any other Kenyan. As much as Hon. Mwenje is talking about specific squatters, a commission should be set up to look into all squatters and all untitled land. The Kenyan Government had once taken action to give people titles deeds, but that exercise faded away. We are now talking about automating community, public, or individually owned land. However, that has not sorted out the problem, which continues to grow. We continue getting new squatters on people's land because of adverse possession of land. The courts normally rule, and then an individual is perhaps denied land. Even in a particular community, someone can come and decide that a particular parcel of land belongs to them. If they get their way in court, they are awarded the land at the expense of the community that lives on that piece of land. Going forward, as much as we want to sort out these specific squatters, I propose that we come up with a commission that specifically looks at every parcel of land in every part of this country. The commission should be segregated to various regions because land issues are localised. Communities within those localities, chaired by older men who know the history of the land, together with the leadership in those areas, can help resolve land issues. For example, in my constituency, many portions of land are untitled, which is all that is required. If that process is done, then the issue will be sorted out. If you go to areas like Nairobi or other town centres, you will find that squatters have settled in certain areas. Demolishing homesteads The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}