NAIROBI, Kenya, May 29 — National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula has referred a petition by former Taita Taveta Governor and Senate aspirant John Mruttu seeking sweeping reforms to Kenya’s succession and land administration laws to the Public Petitions Committee for consideration.
In a communication presented to the House on Thursday, Wetang’ula said the petition, submitted by Mruttu alongside 22 other petitioners, raises concerns over prolonged succession processes that have left vast amounts of productive land and other assets registered in the names of deceased persons for decades.
The Speaker told Members of Parliament that the petition had met the constitutional threshold under Article 119 and was properly before the House for consideration.
“The Petitioners state that a substantial proportion of productive assets in Kenya, particularly land, remain registered in the names of deceased persons due to delayed succession processes,” Wetang’ula said in the communication.
According to the petition, succession procedures under the current legal framework are “complex, costly and inaccessible to ordinary citizens,” involving lengthy court procedures, gazettement requirements, legal representation, valuation costs and cumbersome registry processes.
The petitioners further argued that delayed succession has negatively affected economic growth by limiting access to credit, reducing agricultural productivity and fuelling land disputes across the country.
“They aver that delayed succession constrains economic growth as it hinders the use of assets as collateral, transfer efficiency and investor confidence,” the Speaker noted.
Mruttu, who has been championing the reforms since formally presenting the petition to Parliament in April, described the initiative as a critical step toward restoring justice for widows, orphans and young people denied access to inherited land.
“This marks the first—and very significant—step in the journey to correct injustices that have affected many Kenyan families for years,” Mruttu said earlier while unveiling the petition.
The former governor has previously faulted the current succession framework as “expensive, complex and painfully slow,” saying it locks vulnerable groups out of land ownership and economic opportunities.
“Our vision is clear: a Kenya where a widow will not be forced to endure legal hardship to secure her home, where an orphan is not denied inheritance, and where a young person can build a future on inherited land without prolonged court battles,” he said.
The petition now before Parliament seeks amendments to the Law of Succession Act to introduce simplified procedures for small estates, administrative settlement mechanisms for uncontested estates and expanded decentralised probate services across the country.
It also proposes the digitisation and integration of succession, civil registration and land administration systems, as well as strengthening mediation and alternative dispute resolution mechanisms in inheritance disputes.
Wetang’ula directed the Public Petitions Committee to consider the petition and table its findings before the House in line with parliamentary standing orders.
The reforms, if adopted, are expected to significantly reshape land inheritance processes in Kenya while unlocking dormant land assets for agriculture, housing and enterprise development, particularly in rural counties such as Taita Taveta County.
