The National Land Commission has received 111 cases of historical land injustices from across the country since last year, chairman Muhammad Swazuri said on Friday.
He said most of the cases are from Mombasa, Kilifi, Kwale, Nandi, Murang’a, Narok, Nakuru, Kiambu and Nairobi.
“Most of the claims relate to loss of land and livelihood, restoration of ancestral land rights and from government forests,” Swazuri said at a joint press conference with Lands CS Jacob Kaimenyi on the progress the committee formed to receive claims on historical land injustices has made.
The committee comprises four commissioners and a technical team.
Some politicians and human rights organisations have been piling pressure on the government and the commission to address the injustices that were meted out to Kenyans by the previous administrations.
The politicians have also used the emotive land issue, especially at the Coast, as a campaign tool to woo voters.
Swazuri said a programme outlining steps on how the commission will go about the claims would be launched in Murang’a next month.
“This programme seeks to provide a clear roadmap, with a detailed schedule, timeframe, outline of activities and assignment of responsibilities with respect to adjudication of present and historical land injustices,” he said.
He added that the committee will continue admitting claims from the public until 2021, before launching research and investigations into the cases.
The committee will have until 2023 to make recommendations based on the outcome of the investigations. Implementation of the recommendations will run until 2027.
Swazuri (pictured) said the enactment of enabling legislation such as the Land Laws Amendment Act and consequent development of requisite regulation have prepared the ground for tackling the injustices.
Lauding the initiative, Kaimenyi said the ministry is committed to providing resources to implement the recommendations.
“I want to caution the commission to be careful as they recommend remedies so resolutions do not cause other injustices or exacerbate existing solutions,” he said. The CS took a swipe at politicians who have been attacking the government for failing to implement the TJRC and Ndung’u reports, adding a lot has been done.