The Cabinet Secretary for Lands, Public Works, Housing and Urban Development, Alice Wahome, has warned that there is no free land for squatters to illegally invade.
Addressing the issue of more than 5,000 acres of land earmarked for the construction of the Ksh2 trillion Dangote East Africa Oil Refinery in Lamu, Wahome said the government’s commitment to compensate legitimate landowners and squatters does not give individuals the right to invade private or public land and expect compensation from the government.
She disclosed a multi-agency team has been established to verify legitimate landowners in areas where the refinery and other planned developments will be constructed.
Speaking after launching the Customer Service Week for the State Department for Lands and Physical Planning, Wahome warned that the exercise will also expose individuals seeking to benefit illegally from the compensation process, adding that since 2024, Ksh10B had been set aside to address outstanding land matters.
Wahome, who was accompanied by Lands Principal Secretary Nixon Korir, also accused unnamed individuals from Nairobi of fuelling discord among local residents and allegedly sponsoring petitions filed in court in an attempt to interfere with the construction of the said facility that will be processing a capacity of 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day.
Meanwhile, Wahome said a raft of reforms at Ardhi House has aided the ministry in increasing revenue collection, with up to Ksh22 billion collected so far.
She attributed the increase to measures aimed at curbing corruption and the digitisation of land services, which she said facilitated more than 700,000 transactions during the financial year.
