Tales of suffering dominate Mwabundusi squatters’ meeting with Senate committee in Kisii

Philip Achiki reading a petition to the Senate Committee

Residents of Mwabundusi village in Nyaribari Chache staked ancestral ownership to about 500 acres land in the suburbs of Kisii town.

They now want urgent intervention from the Senate and other relevant agencies to have it reverted it to them or alternatively to be compensated.

The vilagers’ tales of woe and suffering are documented in a petition filed by Philip Achiki, a move that also invited a visit by the Senate Committee on Lands, Environment and Natural Resources.

At the centre of the standoff are the staggering swathes of land where government research agency, KALRO, a police post and Kari primary school and property that hosted a franchise of companies.

The occupation has still not exhausted the forested junk that has also cut off the alleged squatters from accessing other areas of Kisii town due to lack of a road

Nominated Senater Karen Nyamu, deputy chair of the Committee, together with other members, held a sitting Tuesday with the villagers with view to establishing the status of the issue.

Achiki said the villagers were deprived of their land in the early 1960s by the government and promised alternative accomodation in Sotik, a promise that has not materialized decades later.

“Many of these are suffering after being forcefully uprooted from their land . Today even their young ones cannot even marry and enjoy life because they have no land of their own,” the representative told the committee in a moving narration.

“We were squeezed out, have no land to farm or even where we can bury our kin and when we bury we do so along the river bank” Achiki said describing it as a historical injustice of monumental proportions that should be quickly addressed.

With no land to farm,added Achiki,the people are left suffering serious deprivations.

KALRO is using about 88 acres of land for livestock development and research

“Let the Organization take the 88 acres and leave the rest of the land to the residents. It is our ancestors who donated it to the government and do not deserve to suffer “ Achiki told the Committee.

Samuel Otaro, a youth ,said they dig shallow latrines along the river banks which pollute water, noting, residents risk contracting water borne diseases.

He said the area is forested and has no road to connect villagers, stressing, criminals hide and harass children.

“There in instances where criminals attempt to rape women and defile our children,”for Otaro told the meeting.

Senator Kamau Murango (Kirinyaga) was told that neither the petitioners nor the occupying agencies have ownership documents.

After the one hour sitting, Sen Nyamu said they will follow it case up with the National Land Commission with view to have the matter resolved.

“The Senate Committee will do everything in it’s power to have these matter handled,” she stated.

The Senator told both parties to present their documents within 14 days for the Committee to make recommendations for action to be taken by relevant bodies.

A quick agreement was however reached to have a path running through the contested land upgraded into a road to allow accessibility.