The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) is actively pursuing the recovery of six prime parcels of public land in Kericho Town, valued at approximately KSh 400 million and owned by the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS).
The commission revealed that private developers illegally acquired these properties in collaboration with certain land officials. Ignatius Wekesa, the EACC South Rift regional manager, explained that a 2.5-acre parcel of land was subdivided into six plots and transferred to private developers.
“Investigations by the Commission showed that the land was already Government property at the time it was allocated to private individuals. Therefore, it was not available for allocation to the current owners or anyone else, making all related transactions fraudulent and illegal,” Wekesa said.
Following its investigations, the EACC filed a suit in the Kericho Environment and Land Court to recover the land. On July 31, the Commission obtained court orders prohibiting the current ‘owners’ from making any dealings on the land until the case is resolved.
In the recovery suit, the EACC is asking the Court to annul all transactions related to the land’s transfer, cancel all illegal entries in the Kericho Land Register, and issue a new Title Deed in the name of the Government.
Wekesa urged, “The EACC calls on all other individuals holding grabbed public land in this region to voluntarily return it to the Government, rather than wait for us to take legal action.”
He added, “The Commission will not only seek the forfeiture of the grabbed land but also pursue the prosecution of all individuals involved in these fraudulent dealings.”
