The County Government of Garissa will soon issue vacation notices to persons who have illegally acquired and developed land beyond the Ring Road in Garissa town.
Speaking during the Mashujaa Day celebrations held at Garissa primary school playgrounds Tuesday, area governor Ali Korane said land grabbing in Garissa town and its environs had resulted into bloody conflicts resulting to deaths and property destruction.
Korane said despite verbal warnings from both county and national governments officials, land grabbing continues unabated.
He said the vacation notices will enable affected persons who had erected illegal structures to demolish them.
The governor warned that those who will defy the notice risk having their structures forcefully demolished on its expiry.
“After the expiry of the notice, my administration will also come up with an elaborate programme to plan and allocate land to all deserving cases,” Korane said.
“We have enough land for everyone seeking place to settle on. The problem is that greedy land speculators are scuttling the process for their own selfish gains,” he added.
The governor also took a swipe at unnamed local politicians accusing them of peddling ‘pettiness, hatred and malice.’
He urged such characters to abandon their destructive politics and instead embrace constructive criticism that will help in the development of Garissa county.
The Governor who was accompanied by members of the county executive also announced that he will be drumming support for the BBI initiative led by area Senator Yussuf Haji.
”Together with our County Assembly we will strive to ensure that BBI Initiative gets the necessary support from a majority of people in the region,” he said.
On Covid-19, Korane raised concern over a possible second wave and urged county residents not to relax on the observance of the basic safety precautions of hand washing, social distancing and wearing of face masks.
He said that so far more than 400 persons have been infected by the virus in Garissa County since the first case was reported in the country.
Meanwhile, Korane has praised all the heroes from the area, who were awarded the much coveted Head of State commendation during this year’s Mashujaa day celebrations, including the county chairman of Kazi Mtaani Dubat Ali Amey and the acting CEO of Garissa Municipality Abdinur Ole Hussein.
The County Commissioner Meru Mwangi read the President’s speech to thousands of residents who turned up for the celebrations that were marked with songs and dances as well as matching parades by the security officers.
By Jacob Songok
