The Kenya Forests Service (KFS) has in the las 3 years gazetted 128,000 ha and reclaimed 55,000 ha (135907.96 acres) of grabbed forest land.
The Chief Conservator of Forests (CCF) Julius Kamau said these are major milestones in forest conservation and protection.
Speaking to Hot News, Kamau said KFS will not relent but will reclaim back what belongs to it and has been grabbed.
“Public forests are set aside for forest conservation and for the public good of the current and future generations. They provide the public with varied ecological goods and services ranging from climate change mitigation and adaptation, water, clean air, biodiversity conservation, and support other sectors of the economy such as tourism, agriculture, and energy” Kamau said.
“It is very selfish and lack of nationhood and patriotism for any individual or entity to grab them for private gains. This will not be tolerated and KFS will not allow the public to be robbed of their natural heritage,” he said.
He spoke a day after members of the Tachoni Community protested the gazettement of 406 .22 hectares of land (1003.24 acres) in Chetambe Hills as forest reserve.
Led by Ndivisi Ward MCA Martin Wanyonyi Pepela, the locals termed as “nonsense” Environment CS Keriako Tobiko’s move to gazette the land.
Through legal notice number 102, the forest conservation and management act number 34 of 2016, Environment CS Keriako Tobiko declared Chetambe (Webuye) Hill Forest a public forest.
The CCF did not disclose when KFS will evict the residents who occupy the forest land.
However, he said KFS will move in “soon”.
Addressing the locals, Wanyonyi said the national government is “annexing their ancestral land”
The gazette notice has caused panic in the area and many people who encroached or were sold forest land are resisting the government’s attempts to evict them.
In October 2018, CS Tobiko while on a tour of Sang’alo Technical Institute in Bungoma, warned that all those who have encroached on Forest land in Chetambe Hills will be evicted.
The CS said no one will be spared irrespective of his social status.
He said several people were visiting the Environment Ministry with fake title deeds seeking help to have them legalized.
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