NAIROBI, Kenya — The Inspector General of State Corporations and the Attorney General have been given three months to compile a comprehensive report on all public land currently facing ownership disputes amid revelations that several State agencies lack title deeds for their properties.
The directive was issued by the Public Investments Committee on Social Services Administration and Agriculture (PIC-SSA), which said the report will guide investigations into ownership and repossession of public land that may have been illegally acquired.
Committee chairperson Emmanuel Wangwe (Navakholo MP) also instructed the Inspector General to place caveats on all parcels of land belonging to State corporations but currently registered under private ownership, to prevent further loss of public assets.
Once the report is completed, it will be tabled in Parliament for review and possible follow-up actions.
“We cannot continue losing public property to private individuals through irregular allocations and weak record management,” said Wangwe.
State Corporations Without Title Deeds
In its report on selected State corporations, the committee found that the Child Welfare Society of Kenya holds 19 parcels of land of undetermined value without title deeds.
Other affected agencies include the Syndemic Diseases Control Council (formerly NACC), the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), and the National Cancer Institute of Kenya.
At the NSSF, one title deed was reportedly revoked through a Kenya Gazette notice after being issued to a private developer.
The National Land Commission (NLC) later confirmed the parcel had been reserved for public use.
To prevent similar disputes, the committee recommended that Parliament enact a law requiring all public land ownership documents to be centrally held by the National Treasury for safekeeping.
Audit and Governance Concerns
Beyond land issues, the committee flagged widespread governance failures across State corporations, including delayed imprest surrenders, poor financial record-keeping, and failure to submit reconciled accounts to the Auditor General within the required timelines.
MPs also cited weak internal audit systems, irregular board meetings, inflated allowances, and poor IT and management controls as persistent challenges undermining transparency and accountability.
On the issue of unpaid debts, the committee noted that several State agencies are struggling to recover long-outstanding payables due to weak collection systems.
It directed all affected entities to initiate debt recovery within three months and report their progress to the Treasury.
“Entities must justify debts that are deemed irrecoverable, document the causes, and have such write-offs approved by their boards and the Treasury,” the report reads in part.
Call for Accountability
The committee has directed all State corporations to act on its recommendations, warning that failure to recover public funds or address audit gaps will attract surcharges against responsible officers.
The findings add to growing concern over mismanagement of public assets, with several government investigations revealing rampant land grabbing and lax record keeping in parastatals across the country.
