Tatu city, county planning laws attract attention

Kiambu County Government and Metropolitan City The blockage in the development master plan approval raises questions about the current legal structure for private entities to give up land for public use.

Stakeholders have questioned the demands of the Kimani Wamatangi-led devolution unit, saying the responsibility ultimately rests with the Lands Cabinet Secretary.

Tatu City Special Economic Zones It also increases the complexity of the problem.

While Preston Mendenhall, the chief operating officer of the Municipality of Tatu, insisted that the demand to cede 10% of the land to the county government for the construction of public facilities and the governor’s residence had no legal or constitutional basis, Mr. Wamatangi cited Sections 55 and 58 of the Physical and Land Use Planning Act of 2019 and 2021 and subsequent regulations.

“The law requires private developers to allocate land for the construction of public facilities such as schools, hospitals, fire stations, recreation areas, police stations, playgrounds and other public facilities. This is what we demand from the City of Tatu,” Wamatangi said in a recent statement.

The battle between Kiambu County Government and the City of Tatu raises several questions, including what counts as land for public use and does the Governor’s Palace fall into that category? It also raises the question of how special the SEZ is and what is the correct proportion or area of ​​land that should be transferred for public use. Also, does the land transferred extend to private developers and is the existing legislation on land transfer clear and adequate?

this Architectural Association of Kenya (AAK) Opinions were expressed on the matter, noting that not only in Kiambu County but also in other devolved units, the issue of abandonment has been misused and abused in the planning permission process.

Commenting on Tatu City, a 5,000-acre mixed-use development in Kiambu County, which has accused the county government of extortion while its master plan was pending approval, AAK chairperson Florence Nyole said: “The lack of clear guidelines on what surrender is and how it should be conducted remains a particularly grey area that is open to abuse by corrupt and overzealous county officials.”

Ms. Niole believes that the 10% contribution demanded by the Kiambu County Government has no legal basis in the current policy and legislative framework. She called the demand “abusive and regrettable”.

She said any attempt by the county to demand and persist in pursuing the developer to hand over the land would expose the county to charges of corruption and abuse of power and leave it defenseless.

“The Land Use Planning Act 2019 provides that land plans and public land identified through planning shall be registered with the county treasury to ensure their security. Therefore, any attempt to extort, coerce or negotiate away these established norms is illegal,” she said. Ms Nyole said the county government was notorious for delaying the approval process for developers, citing the current government’s discontinuation of the electronic development management system citing data corruption and system errors. The Kenya Institute of Planners (KIP) argued that the approval of the Tatu City Development Master Plan was done under the authority of the Cabinet Secretary for Lands. This was based on the fact that Tatu City is a special economic zone and the official gazette notification of May 23, 2017 is still in force.

“However, in approving the plan, the Cabinet Secretary was obliged to consult the Kiambu County Government, where Tatu City is located,” said Fawcett Komollo, the Kiambu County Independence Plan Chairperson.

In a letter dated July 12, 2024 to Abubakar Hassan, Principal Secretary, Department of Investment Promotion, India, Tatu City Chief Operating Officer, Mendenhall, insisted that the Kiambu County Government had no legal basis to demand that the plots be handed over for free. Mr. Mendenhall said the land in Tatu City was private land and therefore could not be handed over for free as demanded by the county government.

“Private land ownership is protected. State and county governments cannot take away ownership except through compulsory acquisition process in accordance with the law. Therefore, the fundamental right to own land is always protected,” he said in the letter.

In a statement on July 18, 2024, Eric Nyadimo, president of the Institute of Surveyors of Kenya (ISK), said the county government’s request for Tatu Municipality to cede part of the land for the governor’s residence was not procedural and exceeded planning approval regulations.

“The Land Act clearly states that if the government needs land for a public purpose, it must follow the compulsory acquisition process, which means that the land must first be acquired through a complex and fair process and fair compensation must be provided to the landowner,” he said.