Alarm over new wave of land invasion in Coast

Landlords in Mombasa and other parts of Coast are grappling with a wave of land invasion that has resulted in protracted court battles. 

The invaders are reportedly selling land to third parties including squatters forcing property owners to move to court. 

Affected landlords said the armed squatters sub-divide the undeveloped land among themselves and put up temporary structures. 

The squatters then go to the land registry and get details of the property before filing cases in court seeking to be given the land on grounds of adverse possession.  

Mzee Mwinyi Mzee said their eight acres family land in Mbungoni, Mombasa county, was invaded by a group of between 30 and 50 squatters two months ago who subdivided it among themselves. 

Mwinyi, 30, who has lived on the land since birth, has been under siege after the squatters pulled down the fence.

He said the family bought the land in the 1970s but they risk losing it to squatters who have been warning anyone who dares challenge them.  

“Land owners in Coast are having a nightmare as armed gangs invade undeveloped land and claim ancestry rights to the land. They at times destroy property and put up structures there. They pose a security because they are always armed while guarding the land they invade,”  he said. 

The squatters usually apply for stay orders in court and subdivide the land and sale it throw away price. 

Mwinyi said his family destroyed the temporary structures with the help of the police but some politicians came to the ground and demanded resettlement of the invaders. 

A family member Hassan Khamis said the Mbungoni invasion was similar to land grabbing in the neighbouring Kilifi county, Bamburi and Mwakirunge in Mombasa. 

“This land invasion is not only a headache to land owners, it  discourages investors and authorities should take action,” stated Khamis. 

The squatters engage in vicious fights compromising security in the region. 

Khamis wants politicians to stay away from land disputes arguing that they are biased and ecourage the squatters to grab land. 

“Politicians should stop encouraging squatters to stay on invaded land. They should assist the land owners and the police in stopping this vice and hence protect private property from unlawful occupation,” he said. 

Mwinyi welcomed Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir’s invitation to his office last week to shed light on the matter after he visited the disputed land. 

“At first we were worried by the governor’s meeting with the squatters on the disputed land. But we welcome the meeting he held with our family representatives to hear our side of the story. It is very encouraging that the governor sought the truth,”  he said. 

Nassir had visited the land accompanied by Kadzandani MCA Fatma Kushe after police pulled down the temporary structures erected by squatters. 

“Together with area MCA Fatma Kushe, I visited 33 families in Mbungoni, Kadzandani, whose homes were tragically destroyed following a dispute over the land,” posted the governor on his social media page. 

Meanwhile, Kenya Land Alliance (KLA) Coast coordinator Nagib Shamsan recently urged the government to vet title deeds and cases of land invasion to establish the truth before buying parcels to settle squatters. 

“We should be careful because government will use taxpayers’ money to buy land for squatters. There should be proper vetting to establish the truth,” he said. 

In 2006, the National Government Administration Officers (NGAO) evicted more than 500 squatters who had invaded an undeveloped land at Mtopanga in Kisauni and cut down coconut trees valued at Sh750,000.

Squatters who were arrested were charged with invading the land belonging to Mohamed Rashid Riyami and were released on Sh1 million bond each.