Siaya Governor James Orengo now wants the State, via the National Lands Commission (NLC), to review and amend the terms of a lease agreement that allocated a considerable portion of the Yala swamp to a private investor for a period of 66 years.
Speaking at the Audrey Golf Resort Hotel in Siaya on Thursday during the launch of the county’s physical and land use development plan, Orengo expressed concerns about the duration of the lease agreement while adding that the county government was sidelined during the striking of the deal.
“The people of Siaya are not against investment but we are saying 66 years is too long; it must be reduced. The lease was executed between the national government and the private investor. The county government needs to be involved on behalf of the communities living in Siaya,” he said.
“If we own land on behalf of the people of Siaya, there is no way the national government can lease the land to a private investor without our participation. This needs to be corrected.”
He added that revenue to the tune of Ksh.70 billion generated from the lease agreement was collected by the national government and not Siaya County.
“The standard premium and the annual rent from the lease was paid to the national government; we did not get a coin. All of it, over Ksh.70 billion, went to the national government,” said the Governor.
He further emphasized that local communities were shortchanged by the agreement since they were granted land within the swamp that lacked potential for any meaningful developments.
“The communities who are living in the Delta and the periphery were given a raw deal; they were given land inside the wetland which they cannot use because they don’t have the tools of turning around the swamp,” said Orengo.
“We want demarcations to be done so that the Wesonga, Alego, Yimbo and Sakwa people have their interests clearly defined within the Yala Delta.”
