The National Land Commission (NLC) has defended its handling of the long-running Ontulili Mount Kenya Forest squatters dispute, maintaining that its 2022 determination was not a reversal of its earlier ruling but the result of a court-ordered rehearing that considered the interests of all affected parties.
Appearing before the National Assembly Public Petitions Committee, NLC Chief Executive Officer Kabale Tache responded to concerns raised in Public Petition No. 59 of 2023 regarding the settlement of squatters from Ontulili on the slopes of Mount Kenya.
The petition, filed on behalf of squatters who claim historical ties to the area, centers on land excisions undertaken in 1975 and 1977.
According to the petitioners, the government excised more than 900 hectares from Mount Kenya Forest specifically to resettle landless families who had lived and worked in the forest under the historical Taungya (Shamba) system.
The document before the lawmakers, the squatters argue that despite the intended purpose of the excisions, the land was instead acquired by the late former Lands Minister Jackson Harun Angaine and occupied by his family, workers and associates, leaving the original beneficiaries landless.
The dispute has become one of Kenya’s most prominent historical land injustice cases, spanning several decades and involving court proceedings, competing ownership claims and demands for restitution.
In its submission to committee, the NLC recounted that the squatters first lodged a historical land injustice claim in 2017. Following investigations and hearings, the Commission issued a determination in February 2019 recommending that the disputed land be reverted to the claimants.
The Commission had also recommended that if restoration of the land was not possible, the estate of the late Angaine should provide alternative land of equal size and value for settlement of the squatters.
However, that decision was challenged in court by the Angaine estate, leading to a fresh hearing ordered by the Environment and Land Court.
According to the NLC, the court directed the Commission to reopen the case, hear all affected parties and issue a fresh determination. The rehearing brought in additional stakeholders, including farmer groups, private companies and other interested parties who had acquired interests in portions of the disputed land.
Tache told lawmakers that the outcome of the rehearing led to a revised framework for addressing the dispute.
‘’The 2022 determination does not constitute a departure from the Commission’s earlier position. Rather, it was the direct result of a judicial directive requiring a fresh hearing, expanded participation and reconsideration of all issues, including the rights of third parties and the practical feasibility of reverting the original excised parcels.”
The 2022 determination recommended that the Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Government identify and profile genuine squatters who have not benefited from previous settlement programmes. It further directed the Ministry of Lands and Physical Planning to verify the beneficiaries before the Land Settlement Fund Board of Trustees acquires land for their resettlement.
The Commission also recommended that the Estate of Jackson Angaine contribute 25 percent of the resettlement costs.
A key issue raised before the committee was whether the Commission had departed from its original finding that the land should be returned to the squatters.
The NLC insisted that the substance of its findings remained unchanged despite the different remedy proposed in 2022.
On the legality of the original allocation, the Commission maintained that the process through which the Angaine family acquired the land was irregular.
According to the NLC, “The Angaine Family contends that the two parcels of land were lawfully allocated to them by the President. However, the Commission found that the allocation process was irregular, as the President lacked the legal authority under Section 3 of the Government Lands Act (repealed) to allocate the said parcels.”
The Commission further stated that “the allocation resulted in the displacement and discrimination of the landless claimants, thereby constituting a historical land injustice arising from the administrative practices prevailing at the time.”
Despite these findings, NLC told the MPs that the circumstances on the ground had changed significantly over the years noting that a substantial portions of the land had since been transferred to third parties, including multinational companies that had established major investments and created employment opportunities.
As a result, the Commission said it sought to balance the need for justice for the squatters with the protection of legitimate third-party interests and broader public economic considerations.
The Public Petitions Committee is expected to review the Commission’s submissions before making recommendations to the National Assembly on the way forward for the Ontulili squatters.
