The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has announced the recovery of six parcels of public land from private developers in Kisumu County.
In a statement dated Thursday, December 12, the commission revealed that the recovered parcels were valued at Ksh300 million.
According to the EACC, the private developers had grabbed the land from public institutions, including schools and road reserves.
“The land parcels, recovered through litigation, include 3.2 acres in Kisumu CBD belonging to the Kenya Railways Corporation, 7 acres grabbed from Victoria Primary School, a road reserve near the Governor’s Office, and a Government house in the Milimani area belonging to the Ministry of Housing,” the statement read in part.
The commission further indicated that they were still pursuing the recovery of other public lands in Kisumu.
It was highlighted that Kisumu is one of the counties leading in cases of land grabbing, with a notable trend involving the grabbing of road reserves to construct petrol stations.
Among the parcels targeted for recovery are an 18-acre plot in Kibuye Market valued at Ksh2 billion and a 20-acre piece of land in Milimani estate belonging to Kenya Prisons.
“Titles to public land held by private persons are illegal, invalid, null, and void. They do not confer any interest in land,” EACC added.
“Individuals seeking to invest in land should exercise caution and conduct due diligence to avoid purchasing public land, which would later revert to the public,” the statement concluded.
