The County Government of Taita Taveta has completed the upgrading of Kaloleni Informal Settlement Phase II project in Voi.
The County Chief Officer in charge of Housing, Transport, Lands and Natural Resources Reuben Ngeti said that the shillings 4.5m project has been conducted in an open and transparent manner.
“We have finished planning Kaloleni Phase II. The process has been open and transparent and the plot owners can attest to this. For the first time in history, the public has been involved from the start going forward,” Ngeti said.
He said the plot owners will for the next two weeks start verifying their plots and solves all disputes.
The Chief Officer said issuance of title deeds will be fast tracked to ensure the plot owners receive ownership documents in the next few months.
“I have engaged the National Lands Commission and we have resolved to carry out survey and issuetitles instead of going for allotment letters. By doing this, we shall also save money for the plot owners,” he said.
Ngeti was speaking at Dan Mwazo CDF Hall, Voi, during the presentation of the final map of the project where he assured residents that they will be issued with title deeds in the coming few months.
Kaloleni Ward MCA Omar Ahmed announced that all structures built on encroached public land will be demolished.
“All public land will be used to build social structures that will empower the community and not individual s. We shall work with the County Executive to ensure that all public land issued to groups is not sold or transferred to other parties,” the MCA said.
He cautioned residents against selling the land haphazardly as this may bring about landlessness and increase the number of squatters.
“I am aware that some people have already sold their land yet they complain that Kaloleni is full of foreigners. Lease out the land instead of selling it if need be. You need also to wait for your title deeds, its value will shoot,” he added.
Afrimap Kenya limited planner Michael Muriuki said they have ensured that all plots have access roads.
“We did boundaries delimitation, put major and minor roads and interlinked them. We then took the names, plot numbers and the acreage and put them together,” he said.
If the plan will be approved by the County Assembly, development controlled measures will be implemented.
The project implementation committee chairman Juma Mwambogha announced that all disputes arising from the exercise should be brought before their committee during the two weeks verification period that commences on Monday next week.
The plan was handed over to the project implementation committee.
Residents agreed that the area will be called Ore City which is a heritage name that has been used for generations.