Concerns ahead of subdivision of 5,000 acre Lamu Swahili Scheme – Weekly Citizen

A move by national and Lamu county government to subdivide 5,000 hectares of land in Hindi aimed at resolving the squatter situation has generated a lot of heat.
With Lamu presently undergoing a transformation with the expected launch of the Lamu Port later this month, hundreds of people have been flocking Hindi town where there are 40 surveyors, sent from the ministry of Lands to demarcate and survey 5,000 acres Hindi Phase 2 otherwise known as the Swahili Scheme per a presidential directive.
Uhuru Kenyatta directive was issued last month during the head of state’s impromptu visit to the county to inspect ongoing progress with the Lamu Port whose first berth is expected to be operational before the end of this year.
Uhuru met Hindi residents and promised that the national government would issue title deeds that would finally resolve the squatter crisis that has afflicted Lamu since independence.

Twaha

According to Lamu county executive for land Fahima Araphat, the exercise would eliminate landlessness, land grabbing and displacement which have been common fixtures in the land management crisis affecting Lamu.
Analysts say land management in Lamu is a prickly subject that needs political goodwill as well as support from the locals in order to tackle it justly. Locals are worried that the land survey will be not fair and only genuine residents seeking land will be considered in the Swahili Scheme not outsiders.
They want Lamu governor Fahim Twaha to make sure the process is fair and transparent and above all, overboard.
Even as residents rush in hundreds to acquire land in the Swahili Scheme, parts of the scheme have already been claimed by ranchers who have hived off some parts of the land which could lead to a security crisis.
There have been fears that, unless the process is handled fairly, sponsored violence is likely to erupt in the ensuing quest for land in Hindi area.