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{
    "id": 625248,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/625248/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 104,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Nyenze",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1987,
        "legal_name": "Francis Mwanzia Nyenze (Deceased)",
        "slug": "francis-mwanzia-nyenze"
    },
    "content": "Clause 31 talks about the rights of all community members, including women and people living with disabilities, to benefit from community lands. I listened to the Chairman of the Departmental Committee, who talked very well. We have seen communities that have been exploited by the well-to-do, well-schooled and opinion leaders. Such elite groups have exploited the ignorance of ordinary Kenyans. They were convinced to sell their community land or use the land as security for bank loans, only for the communities to subsequently realise that their land has been sold. I am happy that the Chairman has expounded on this aspect. In addition, they have raised the threshold of the community members who can bring about such changes. Hon. Speaker, during the colonial era, land was alienated. There were laws that alienated land from communities. The problem that we face as a country today includes boundaries, stolen community land and a few individuals owning too much land while very many people in this country have no land on which to put up houses or farm and provide for their families. These are anomalies that this Bill has addressed, but not comprehensively enough to include private land. Community land has been abused so much in the area of Kajiado. This Bill should have addressed certain things that I had raised earlier on a similar Bill. One of the shortcomings of this Bill is the definition of “community”. It should be very close to the definition that is given in the Constitution of Kenya, 2010. This Bill has fallen short of giving the timeframe when regular review of the community land register would be carried. I propose that the review should be done in every two years, instead of the proposed five years. That is because land is very important. About 66 per cent of Kenyans depend on land for their livelihood. I want to issue a notice that I will move an amendment in this regard. In Kitui County where I come from – and this Bill has addressed that issue – there are prospective “clever” people from outside the county who have bought land in areas where there is limestone, coal or copper. Even though those people have bought land regularly, I expected this Bill to say that if you have legally bought land with minerals from a community that is not informed, when that community gets to know that you had prior information that there were minerals underground and in one year’s time you are paid compensation, then you must be fined. I expected the Committee to refine that part. That is an area I want addressed because that is what has happened in Kitui where there is limestone, coal, copper and iron ore. People did not know that those minerals were underground, but the land has been bought by other people. There should be compensation for the people of Kitui County who have lacked rain and food. Their children cannot go to school because someone with the knowledge of where minerals are found came and bought their land. What does the Committee plan to do with that kind of scenario? This is the same thing I am talking about in regard to Maasai land. Frankly speaking, Nairobi belongs to the Maasai. All the area towards Karen belong to them, but they were pushed away. I am sure they were not paid the right prices for the land or they never sold it. People who were “clever” enough went to the Ministry of Lands, obtained documents and the Maasai were pushed out of their land where they used to graze and farm. Now they are found in Narok and other towns. This Bill should address that. When I talk about the Maasai, I am talking about other minority communities in Kenya who have been pushed out of their land. This Bill should address the issue of compensation. I am not saying that people should lose the land that they bought fairly, but the Government should put in place a mechanism to compensate the people who were taken 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."
}