President Uhuru Kenyatta moves to solve Kihiu Mwiri land saga

President Uhuru Kenyatta

President Uhuru Kenyatta has directed the Lands ministry to hasten the issuance of title deeds for the troubled Kihiu Mwiri Land Buying firm in Murang'a County.

Acting Lands Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i announced this yesterday when he visited the area. The CS said Uhuru was closely monitoring the methods employed to resolve the crisis.

"The President has instructed that we waive all the payments and fast-track the process of issuance of title deeds after learning that the shareholders had given Sh25,000 each to the errant individuals who have failed to give title deeds," said Dr Matiang'i.

Kihiu Mwiri has been a blood field of sorts following leadership wrangles that have led to the deaths of 10 directors and disappearance of others.

Speaking when he addressed the shareholders at the troubled farm, Matiang'i said the plan kicks off tomorrow with over 100 lands officers deployed to vet documents held by the shareholders.

The land-buying company controls 1,269 acres of land with more than two lists of registers.

The CS, who was accompanied by Murang'a deputy governor Gakure Monyo and MP Sabina Wanjiru Chege, warned the shareholders against being deceived by greedy individuals to part with any money for the release of their title deeds.

The Government has seconded a career administrator, Joseph Kanyiri, to coordinate the process led by Director of Survey Cesare Mbaria. Also deployed is a special police unit, which will be based at the land and will accompany the lands officers in the process.

Matiang'i also asked the shareholders to nominate 30 of their own to work alongside the lands officers to match the satellite images and the ground data.

The officers appointed by the Government capture the data from tomorrow to Sunday before surveying the land from Monday next week.

Leaders from Murang'a, among them Governor Mwangi wa Iria, Senator Kembi Gitura and Wanjiru will on Thursday meet Matiang'i to monitor the process. The police, he said, have launched an investigation on the directors' murders.

"We cannot stomach this nonsense of criminal activities where the innocent are killed," said the CS.

Earlier, the residents told the task force to vet the company register and help differentiate between individuals with genuine share certificates and those with forged ones.

Michael Karanja told the CS that 12 years ago they were each allocated plots, but in the last few years the committee returned to re-survey the land.