A parliamentary committee has accused the Ministry of Lands of abetting fraud in two major land disputes that have dragged on for more than a decade, demanding an immediate investigation by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).
The National Assembly’s Committee on Implementation, chaired by Embakasi West MP Mark Mwenje, said the Ministry has failed to act on resolutions passed by the 12th Parliament, and has instead allowed irregularities to continue unchecked.
During a tense session on Tuesday, the lawmakers grilled Ministry officials over unresolved land cases in Nairobi’s Mowlem Ward and Kilifi’s Galana Ranch.
“We are tired of being given half-baked reports,” Mwenje said, waving a pile of documents. “These are title deeds issued fraudulently by Ministry officials. Why has nothing been done?”
The committee's frustration was visible. MPs said the Ministry had become complicit in illegal land transactions, with Mwenje accusing some staff of deliberately issuing fake titles.
Hilary Kosgei, MP for Kipkelion West, called the Ministry’s report “shallow and evasive” and claimed a cartel within the Ministry was working with outside actors to frustrate justice.
He pushed for the DCI’s Land Fraud Unit to take over both cases. “It’s time for the police to handle this. People have waited long enough,” he said.
The Ministry, represented by Chief Land Registration Officer David Nyandoro, sought to shift blame, saying the disputed matters fall under the jurisdiction of other bodies.
“These cases are better addressed by the National Land Commission, the DCI, and the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission,” Nyandoro told the Committee.
But MPs dismissed the response, saying the Ministry was shirking its responsibility. “You can’t wash your hands when it’s your own staff signing off on fraudulent documents,” Mwenje said.
The Committee has now formally asked the DCI to take charge of the two investigations and report back within 90 days.
It also directed the Ministry and the National Land Commission to begin implementing previous House resolutions on the matters and submit updates within the same period.
MPs Lilian Siyoi, Ntutu Kitilai, Memusi Kanchory, and Raphael Wanjala echoed the call for a fresh investigation, saying Kenyans deserved answers after years of silence.
The twin cases—one involving disputed parcels in Nairobi’s densely populated Eastlands, and the other concerning the controversial extension of Galana Ranch boundaries in Kilifi—have long been symbols of bureaucratic inertia and alleged collusion.
If the DCI steps in as ordered, it may finally test whether Kenya’s anti-fraud mechanisms can deliver justice in cases that have, for years, remained mired in suspicion.