Taxman on the spot for failure to secure land

Parliament has put the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) on the spot over its failure to secure title deeds for some of its 65 prime properties.

The Public Investments Committee (PIC) has directed the taxman to provide a detailed status report on the court cases involving some of its parcels of land which have been pending for the past 16 years.

PIC chairman Adan Keynan gave KRA commissioner-general John Njiraini seven days to file full details of the cases some of which have been pending in court since 2000.

The National Assembly committee accused the KRA’s top management of laxity in pursuing registration of its properties which have either been grabbed by private developers or contested in court.

“The KRA is supposed to be a premier Class A parastatal. It is unacceptable to hear that a case filed in the year 2000 or 16 years down the line has not been concluded,” Mr Keynan told Mr Njiraini during the scrutiny of the KRA’s books of accounts for the year to June 2015.

Kiharu MP Irungu Kang’ata accused the KRA, its legal department and external lawyers hired to pursue the cases in court of lethargy.

“There is serious lethargy on the part of lawyers who have failed to push for the conclusion of the matter.

“The information given to us by the KRA regarding this properties is not sufficient because there is no current status on the same. 

“We want to know whether there is an injunction or a court order barring processes of registration,” said Mr Kang’ata.

Juliet Kamande, senior deputy commissioner, legal services, told the House team that the KRA had acquired 48 titles for its parcels of land out of which three were registered in 2013/14 financial year in Kiunga, Bamburi and Embu.

“We have letters of allotment for six plots and processing of titles are in progress. Seven other parcels are at various stages of pre-registration process,” said Ms Kamande.