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{
    "id": 953,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/953/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 458,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Orengo",
    "speaker_title": "The Minister for Lands",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 129,
        "legal_name": "Aggrey James Orengo",
        "slug": "james-orengo"
    },
    "content": "The second reason why I am saying that it is important to be careful about demolitions is in terms of Article 40 of the Constitution. It says very clearly that when it comes to compensation in relation to any land, that a title deed in itself is not the only standard to be used. Even institutions, where people do not have title, an interest in land is not necessarily exemplified or concretized in a title. In fact, most of the land in Kenya, as I speak today, has no titles. One should not be heard to be saying that if somebody does not have title to land, then he is not entitled to compensations. There are all notions in the law that, again, I think my learned friend Millie Odhiambo will support this, that where it comes to property law, there are principles of equity that sometimes go against innocent Kenyans that may have bought land for value, but not knowing that there was no proper titles. As I speak today, none of the people who derived title from Mlolongo--- I have not seen anybody who derived title from Mlolongo, or one of those entities coming out with a title to show that, indeed, they had a proper title registered with the Commissioner of Lands. That is not to say that they cannot be compensated. If you say they have to be compensated then you have to demonstrate the legal right or the constitutional right. So, the formulation that the Committee has come with, an ex-gratia payment does not mean that it is of any lesser value. But it means that the person to be paid does not have to demonstrate that they have a legal right or a constitutional right, which means not withstanding any other considerations in the law, they should be awarded some kind of damages. I think this should be done on a case by case basis. Let all these matters be interrogated. A lot of time, you will find people who will represent themselves for compensation, maybe just professional squatters, or people who really do not derive a proper title from any of this kind of situation."
}