Kangai Ward residents in Kirinyaga County are demanding repossession of a public land within the local market currently occupied by a church.
The five-acre piece located within Kangai market forced county government officers led by the Lands CEC Reverend Murimi Kanjobe to visit the site Tuesday morning where they assured residents that their demand would be met.
The residents now want the church ground sub-divided into two equal portions to enable them settle some local small traders who have been displaced by the ongoing construction of a road.
They told the CEC that the church had only five worshipers and had rented half of the compound to a carpenter, while the women were conducting business along the road reserve after being displaced by the contractor.
Through their chairman Muchiri Koori, they claimed even the land where the local Chief’s office stood was a public cemetery where they used to bury their kin.
“The chief’s office had to be built on a public cemetery due to lack of land and this has not been going on well with us as it portrays disrespect for the dead,” Koori said.
The area MCA John Gitari said since power rests with the people and they had decided the church land be sub-divided into two to create space for an open market for the traders, it will certainly be so.
Gitari also told the residents a Sh100 million tomato processing factory has been earmarked to be built at the same market.
“Kangai is growing and changing the economic dynamics as attested by the tarmacking of Kimicha-Kangai- Kandongu- Kagio road. As such we must be ready to embrace such changes and move together,” Gitari said.
Kanjobe said his office will soon write a letter to the concerned church and notify it of the intent to have the ground sub-divided.
He said all the five acres were actually in the name of the county government and as such the interests of the locals would be prioritized.
By Irungu Mwangi
