- Korir spoke when he appeared before the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Lands probing ownership of the contentious land.
- The Committee was meeting the PS after an inspection visit to the contentious land on July 6, 2024.
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Lands Principal Secretary Nixon Korir has advocated for the compulsory acquisition of a disputed land parcel adjacent to Moi University in Eldoret to facilitate the resettlement of Ngeria squatters.
Korir noted that the dispute had gone up to the Supreme Court and that his hands were tied regarding the plight of the squatters who have petitioned the National Assembly regarding ownership of the 1,500 acre-land.
“This matter has been adjudicated in the highest court in the land and therefore the State Department cannot take further action,” Korir stated.
The process, he explained, would involve the compulsory acquisition of the contentious land to the Settlement Fund to initiate the squatter’s resettlement.
Korir spoke when he appeared before the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Lands probing ownership of the contentious land.
Both the Squatters and a private developer who sold it to the University claim to have been offered the land by former late President Daniel Arap Moi.
Committee Chairperson Joash Nyamoko directed the PS and his team to undertake further validation of documents and correspondences relating to ownership of the land filed by key parties, to enable the Committee to arrive at the most logical conclusion on the matter.
The Committee was meeting the PS after an inspection visit to the contentious land on July 6, 2024.
The Committee began the probe after locals under the umbrella of Ngeriaquatters petitioned the National Assembly to come to their rescue after alleged trespassers began tilling the contentious land in readiness for the 2024 planting season earlier this year, despite the ongoing ownership dispute.
The Committee subsequently ordered the immediate suspension of all activities on the contentious land pending resolution of the ownership dispute.
Korir told the Committee that the matter had been resolved through a Judgment at the Supreme Court on December 15, 2023, which issued a permanent injunction restraining the squatters from invasion of the land.
The Squatters had claimed to have been allocated the contentious land for settlement by former President, the Late Daniel Moi, a move the Court ruled was irregular.
Nyamoko noted that the Committee had an obligation to conclude its probe and make a final determination and directed the PS to undertake a thorough verification of documents and correspondence relating to ownership of the land presented by key parties in the dispute.
“We need you to do that so that as we proceed, we are sure that we are citing and quoting information from legitimate documents,” said Nyamoko.
The Committee also issued a fresh directive for the Moi University Management to avail their alleged ownership title of the Land.