Nakuru Lands CEC exposed over limited knowledge of his docket

 Nakuru War Memorial Hospital gate locked with a chain and padlock, February 7, 2024. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

A senior official at the County Government of Nakuru was put to task on his understanding and knowledge about land ownership in the region when he appeared in court to testify.

John Kihagi, the County Executive Committee Member (CECM) Lands, Physical Planning, Housing, and Urban Development, was not able to produce in court, records to show which properties in Nakuru were public and which ones were not.

While giving his testimony before Chief Magistrate Elizabeth Juma, Kihagi was hard-pressed to explain the difference between land owned by the county government and that under the National Government.

According to Kihagi, as long as what is constructed on land in counties carries out devolved functions, the land can be said to be owned by the respective county government.

“If the land has a hospital or a market, under the devolved function, then we can say the land belongs to the county government,” he said.

Kihagi was testifying in a case where three War Memorial Hospital directors, alongside four others, are charged with fraudulently renewing the lease for the 25-acre land in Milimani, where the hospital stands.

The lease was renewed for 50 years, effective March 1, 2021.

Kihagi told the court that once the lease for the hospital expired in 2021, the same land reverted back to the county government.

He was, however, unable to produce documents showing the land belonged to the county government. He was also unable to explain how the county government owned the land.

“As a county government, can you allocate yourself public land?” asked Dr Simon Mwangi, one of the accused people and a director of the hospital.

“No, we cannot allocate ourselves land but we apply for the same to be allocated or reserved for us,” he said.

The CECM was also unable to prove that the county or the national government pumped money into the hospital to buy machines or pay staff.

Kihagi was asked to explain why the county government interfered with the running of the hospital, took it over in January 2024, and shut it down, chasing away patients and staff.

He said the county government had blocked the renewal of the lease, owing to the fact that there was a dispute over its ownership with a public hospital that is adjacent to it.

However, he failed to produce a document showing the county government raised an objection on the renewal of the lease within 60 days after it was applied on January 9, 2020, as required by the law.

Kihagi produced a document showing the land dispute issue was raised in 2023, two years after the lease had already been renewed.

Kihagi, despite claiming he knew more about the land ownership, was unable to prove the presence of a helipad on the land.

He explained that part of the land was a helipad because government choppers landed on it.

He failed to produce permits and approval for the alleged helipad from the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA).

“There is no approval as far as I know,” he testified.

When further interrogated, Kihagi said he did not search the contested land to know who owned it and who were directors of the hospital.

According to Kihagi, the county government relied on and trusted information they received from their subordinates, land officials, and consultancy.

“I did not see the need to do the search because we had the CR12 received from the land office,” he testified.

Kihagi said despite complaining that the hospital lease was fraudulently renewed, the county government had no documents to prove the renewal process was illegal.

Further, he confirmed that they had no document to show that they disapproved of the renewal of the lease, despite indicating it in his statement.

“I do not know what happened in the land office in Nairobi but as a county government, we challenge the renewed lease,” he testified.

The CECM confirmed that the county government had no powers to cancel lease nor request for the cancellation.

He admitted that the county also applied for the land to be reserved by the National Land Commission but they got no response.

The hearing continues in June.