Land Mafia Now Pounces on NSSF Land in Machakos County

The National Social Security Fund (NSSF) has raised the alarm over fraudsters asserting ownership of its land in Machakos with the intention of luring buyers into fake land deals.

In a public notice on Monday, the NSSF cautioned members of the public against making any payments or engaging with such individuals, entities, their agents or proxies, saying the fund will not bear any liabilities arising from such dealings.

The NSSF stated that it remains the registered owner of all parcels of land known as registration numbers: LR No: 20694, 24475, 26472, 24574, 24577, 24578, 24579, 20355, 20305, 20181, 20182, 20184, 20201, 20205, 20206, and 20207 situated in Mavoko, Machakos.

“Consequently, any purported allotment, subdivision, survey, buying or selling, construction upon, or dealings in connection with the said parcels without the consent of Board of Trustees of the NSSF is unlawful, illegal, fraudulent,” the NSSF said.

Katani and Sabaki

The said property fraudsters have been targeting individuals seeking to purchase land in the Katani and Sabaki areas of Mavoko, Machakos County.

NSSF has been battling a headache in the form of property takeover fraud undertaken by crooks altering property deeds to pass as the owners.

Property takeover fraud has now become so entrenched that many property owners are living in constant fear of being dispossessed.

Last month, Agricultural Development Corporation (ADC) warned that rogue land sellers had encroached and annexed its Sh25 billion worth of property in a scheme aimed at deceiving Kenyans that the State agency was selling its land.

ADC said it had noted widespread encroachment of its land mainly within the 1.75 million-acre Galana and Kulalu ranches in Kilifi and Tana River.

RELATED: Shock as ‘Land Mafia’ Grabs 500,000 Acres of State Land

Land grabbing cases have been on the rise in many parts of the country, most of which are staged by a cartel with membership of government officials, land surveyors, brokers, and lawyers who ‘legalise’ cases of fraud in land dealings.

Undeveloped land

Quite often, rogue brokers scout for chunks of undeveloped land – whether owned by the government or private entities, and then collude with land officials and surveyors to subdivide the property before selling it off to unsuspecting buyers.

RELATED: Inside the Dangerous World of Kenya’s Land Fraudsters

There is also a cartel that grabs private and public property and moot cunning ways of selling it off in the name of resettling squatters.

In January, East African Portland Cement Company agreed to sell 1,331 acres of land in Athi River to thousands of squatters living on the property, in a deal valued at Sh8.3 billion.

The squatters, who invaded the Sh27 billion ranch in 2010 after EAPCC announced plans to dispose of the property, have been coercing the firm to sell the land to them at a throwaway price, sparking a conflict between the two parties.

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