Orengo defends Raila over Mau resettlement delay

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He said the resettlement of IDPs and forest evictees lies squarely with an inter-ministerial committee that is chaired by President Mwai Kibaki/FILE

NAIROBI, Kenya, Sept 9 – Lands Minister James Orengo has defended PM Raila Odinga over the stalled resettlement program that has caused jitters among a section of North Rift MPs.
Orengo said the attempt to link the PM to the resettlement project is politically motivated.
He said the resettlement of IDPs and forest evictees lies squarely with an inter-ministerial committee that is chaired by President Mwai Kibaki.
However, the minister agreed with the three legislators that included Minister Franklin Bett, assistant ministers Magerer Langat and Beatrice Kones that the process is slow.
He explained that resources for the purchase of the land are available but finding the land has met some technicalities.
Already, he said there is Sh1 billion at the trustees fund kitty headed by ministries of Land, Finance and Agriculture.
Orengo said they have identified 4,000 acres of land in Rongai and another 500 acres in Muhoroni but there are no documents thus hampering efforts of acquiring them.
The minister noted that the parcels of land already under their watch is enough to resettle more than 80 percent of the forest evictees whose number stands at 7,000 families.
He said about 250 families had been resettled and warned politicians not to politicise the Mau resettlement issue for their political survival as the country gears towards holding the general election.
He announced that the Treasury is holding another Sh4billion for the resettlement of IDPs and forest evictees with Sh1billion to be channelled through Ministry of Special Programmes and the remaining Sh3 billion to be given to his Ministry.
Orengo who was accompanied by assistant minister for finance Oburu Odinga while addressing the press in Kisumu challenged the leaders questioning the process to join in and help resettle the evictees instead of making political statements.
He noted that most of them are government ministers and wondered why they had to issue ultimatums while outside.
Orengo also called upon the forest evictees to look for suitable land and approach his ministry for purchase to help in expediting the issue which has stagnated for long.
Oburu on his part warned of settling political scores with Mau evictees who have been living in the cold for all these times only for their case to resurface when the country nears general election.

  • Swala Nyeti

    Point scoring and passing the buck. ODM is reaping the fruit of their shenanigans. That they are in govt and speaking like outsiders…. it ODM not perfected that strategy? Orengo you are a let down to your supporters who expected better upon your appointment. Besides, why do you not comment on the teachers strike…… or are you assuming it wont affect the Premier?

    • Jannadas

      Surely you should know ODM is still outsider in the govt,

      • Doreen

        The buck stops with the CEO of the country,take your issues there !

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Kwessi-Pratt/100000996986819 Kwessi Pratt

    Only a fool doesnt see Odm has its eyes on the money. They have been stealing right and left while pointing fingers. Am sure you have all seen the sort of games Ngong’ has been playing with NHIF funds and even appointments. The idea is to cloud issues so that he cant be accused of any wrong doing. And with his know it all bloated attitude, he thinks Kenyans are too primitive to see his dirty games. Either Kenyans have to wake up to Odm’s criminal conduct, or the country will forever remain at war with itself. Infact, the current wave of strikes is Odm’s response to brother Miguna Miguna’s damaging book about their ever inept leader. We are supposed to shift our attention from Miguna’s serious allegations to strikes led by Raila’s fellows in the unions leadership. Am sure you have all noticed that the ever pretentious PM has not this time round, faked attempts to “cool down” union leaders as it has always been the case in the past. Why? Obviously, he knows his art at the very finest is at work!

    • Doreen

      Who is the CEO of Kenya?…Kwesi why don’t you start where the buck stops?

      • http://www.facebook.com/people/Kwessi-Pratt/100000996986819 Kwessi Pratt

        @Doreen: Its not about CEO here! Its about poison spewed by people masquerading as the best leaders on earth. The CEO has not even talked about the so called land grabbing mum! All the same, Raila is a co-whatever! And not only that, land can NOT be grabbed in Kenya. There are very well watertight established procedures of acquiring it. Infact, the term “landgrabbing” was paraded by a former regime after world bank and IMF cut funds to the country. The idea was to speculate on land and raise money without people like you knowing what was happening. So every time a guy started erecting structures on a road reserve, gullibles were quickly told that it had been grabbed by a developer! Odm guys, who mostly hang on their ancestral enclaves, quickly fell for the trick and even made it their supposed strong points!

        To acquire property in Kenya you have to get approval from the local authority in the given area. Then from the lands board. The board involves who is who in provincial administration, other government departments and that includes security agencies as well, eg, DCIO, PCIO, PPO, etc. Then there is the ministry of lands. Instruments have to be approved by no other than the commissioner of lands, or as it was the case in the previous constitution, the president himself. In such a guarded government structure, you can tell us now how its possible to “grab land!” Saying things out of ignorance to incite people, purportedly to gets votes is evil, if not utterly criminal pal. PM Raila’s politics is totally out of place and makes Kenyans drink from the cup of tribalism, falsehoods and empty bitterness. No wonder he is now swiftly on the decline!

  • Doreen

    Why don’t we all start where the buck stops…at the CEO