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{
    "id": 1490172,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1490172/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 160,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Westlands, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Tim Wanyonyi",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": " Thank you, Hon. Temporary Speaker. I want to add my voice on this debate. We all remember the land control boards. They are the genesis of many land ownership disputes in this country. Families have been disinherited. Land has been taken away or sold without families being aware. Creating these committees at the constituency level will provide local solutions right at the grassroot-level. They will be very close to people. Carefully selected people will sit in these committees. They will be people from within the locality, who understand land issues. They have the knowledge and history of any land in the locality. Therefore, they will not go into matters that will bring conflict in the community or families. Sometimes people take land matters very lightly. When you read cases about land, some have been in existence in court for a long time. People who started the cases may be in their 40s or 50s. The cases are still there because somebody messed up that issue. Once we have land committees established at the constituency-level, we will have appeal committees to handle land matters. This is a very critical Bill as it seeks to establish very robust committees at the constituency level. This is seeking home-grown solutions to land issues. I am sure that it will help to minimise the disputes. The Bill also provides that the committees will explore alternative dispute resolution mechanisms. This is a good development because it will reduce the number of cases that will be going to court. The backlog of cases in our courts lead to delays in getting solutions. When we have cases referred to alternative land dispute resolution jurisdictions within the locality, there will be quick solutions. Disputes will be resolved quickly because the people dealing with the cases understand the historical land issues in the area. As regards land ownership, our agricultural land in the villages is being split into small land parcels that cannot be economically used. People have taken agricultural land, split it into small plots and sold it out. Our food security will be endangered if we do not control and manage land well. With those remarks, I support and thank the Mover, Professor Oundo, for bringing this very critical Bill. It will revolutionise land dealings in this country."
}