• The Kandara Residents Association says it has no confidence in Murang'a and Kiambu county governments.
• It had sued the fruit company, the NLC, Murang'a and Kiambu county governments and the Attorney General, and wanted them barred from renewing leases for nine blocks of land.
Image: John Kamau
The Kandara Residents Association wants the President to form a land demarcation committee to oversee resettlement of members on Del Monte land.
The lobby has been pursuing allocation of parcels occupied by the multinational fruit processor. They want the land demarcated and allocated to members.
On Saturday during a press conference in Thika town, it proposed that the demarcation team be led by officials from the Office of the President and not the county governments of Kiambu and Murang'a, cautioning that they have no confidence in the administration of the two devolved units.
"We don’t trust that we will get our rights should the county governments lead the exercise. That’s why we are pleading with the President to intervene and form a demarcation committee that will be spearheaded by county commissioners from the two counties,” patron Philip Kamau said.
They welcomed a ruling by the High Court in Murang'a, which, even though dismissed their petitions, allowed them to seek redress through other avenues.
It had sued the fruit company, the NLC, Murang'a and Kiambu county governments and the Attorney General. Members wanted them barred from renewing leases for nine blocks of land.
However, Justice J. G. Kemei, in a 16-page ruling last week, threw out the petition on grounds that the matter had been overtaken by events as the NLC had already published a Gazette Notice No 2 dated March 1, 2019, regarding the claim by the association.
“Section 13 and 15 of the NLCA gives the NLC power to investigate historical injustice and make recommendations. Under Section 15 (9) of the NLCA, the NLC is entitled to make a raft of forms of compensation such as restitution, land compensation, resettlement on alternative land, sale and sharing of profits,” Justice Kemei ruled.
In the notice, the NLC said 70 per of any excess land ceded by Del Monte should be given to members of the community and 30 per cent to the respective county government.
Kamau said his team was satisfied with the court decision even though their applications were dismissed.
“This is a win-win situation for Kandara Residents Association and Del Monte Kenya Ltd. For Kandara squatters, we will get our rights for the historical injustices, while Del Monte has been given a nod to go ahead with their lease renewal process,” he said.
The association represents 5,000 squatters, including victims of historical injustices from both Murang'a and Kiambu counties. It is demanding a large chunk of land, which it claims is occupied illegally by the multinational.
Kamau said the majority of those to benefit are people whose families suffered historical injustices during the colonial era when they were dispossessed of their land, which the colonialists converted to large-scale sisal plantations before resorting to pineapple growing.
“A good number of them are squatters from Gachagi, Umoja and Madharau villages in Thika, while the rest are from Kandara subcounty in Murang’a. God has heard our prayers and we will finally settle on the land, which is rightfully ours,” Kamau said.
He said that besides the residential and agricultural portions that will be sub-divided among members, there will be an industrial park, cottage industries and greenhouses, among other social amenities, and land for the construction of a megacity.
Last year, then Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu signed an agreement with Del Monte in which the company surrendered 630 acres to the county government in exchange for the renewal of its lease.
However, Kamau dismissed the deal as illegal, insisting that only the NLC is mandated by law to renew land leases.