Municipality MCA Elias Murega of the Meru County Assembly wants the executive to publicise the state of all public land in Meru town to expose the extent of land grabbing.
The MCA wants the Lands executive to provide a list of all public plots in areas including Mwendantu, Kanu grounds, Salama-Mjini, Kambakia, Kongoacheke, Kinoru Stadium, Makutano.
Mr Murega wants to establish the availability of the land for public utilities and for the executive to provide maps for Ntima/Igoki section. This is as it emerged that most of the grabbed and illegally allocated plots are in Milimani estate, near Meru Museum and Kirukuri estate. The MCA said the ownership of most public plots was in question hence the need for clarification from the county.
In 2015, the former county administration claimed that more than 200 plots worth billions of shillings, that belonged to the county, had been grabbed in Meru town alone. Out of these, 42 plots along the Kanyuru River were in private hands, the result of collusion between individuals and corrupt officials of the defunct local government.
The report by the Ndung’u Commission indicates that 86 public plots within Meru Municipality were irregularly allocated to individuals. The Meru County Integrated Development Plan (CIDP) states that 50 percent of public land in the county is prone to grabbing and recommends implementation of the report to recover stolen land and avert grabbing.
[Article source: The Daily Nation, by David Muchui]
