President William Ruto has vowed to end the long-standing squatter problem at the Coast region, saying his administration will accelerate the issuance of title deeds to residents who have lived on their land for decades without formal ownership documents.

Speaking on Friday at Mama Ngina Drive in Mombasa during the issuance of title deeds to residents, President Ruto said his government was targeting the issuance of 300,000 title deeds as part of efforts to address historical land ownership challenges at the Coast.

“Residents of the Coast region have been living like squatters for a very long time. It is high time that we do away with this,” Ruto said.

The President said the government was determined to ensure residents acquired legal ownership of their land and ended years of uncertainty, court battles and disputes involving land.

“That is why my government has decided to issue title deeds to the residents. We are issuing 300,000 title deeds. The issue of squatters has to stop,” he said.

Ruto acknowledged the challenges faced by Coast residents, including prolonged court cases and alleged land grabbing, saying the government would intervene to protect legitimate landowners.

“I know the challenges you have been facing. Some of you have been suffering from court cases, your land being grabbed by grabbers. This is what we want to finish,” the President said.

He told residents receiving the documents that they would leave the event with their title deeds, describing the move as part of efforts to restore security of land ownership.

“All of you here will leave with your title deeds,” he said.

The President also issued a warning to individuals he accused of illegally acquiring land, saying the government would take action against land grabbing.

“I know we still have many residents who have been going through hell from land grabbers. We are going to deal with the land grabbers. Your time is up,” Ruto said.

He said the government would not allow people to use illegally acquired title deeds to intimidate or displace other Kenyans.

“You cannot continue to let our people suffer because you acquired title deeds illegally. The government is going to stand with the people,” he said.

Ruto further said the government would not tolerate demolitions arising from disputed land ownership and maintained that all Kenyans should be treated equally before the law.

“We will not allow demolitions. No Kenyan is more special than the other,” he said, adding that many of the individuals involved in alleged land grabbing were based in Mombasa.

Joho: Residents waited decades for title deeds

Mining, Blue Economy and Maritime Affairs Cabinet Secretary Hassan Joho welcomed the issuance of the title deeds, saying many Coast residents had waited for decades to secure formal ownership of their land.

Joho said some residents had reached old age without receiving title deeds for land they had occupied for many years.

“It is very sad that some of our people had to wait until they reached 60 and 70 years to get their titles,” Joho said.

He commended the President for what he described as a significant step towards giving Coast residents security of land ownership.

“President Ruto, you have really dignified our people through issuing these title deeds,” Joho said.

The CS also criticised previous administrations, arguing that they had failed to adequately address the region’s longstanding land ownership challenges.

“The previous governments failed. They were not keen on empowering our people through ensuring they get their title deeds,” Joho said.

The issuance of the title deeds is expected to provide residents with formal documentation of land ownership and help address longstanding disputes and insecurity surrounding land in parts of the Coast region.