Mining operations have come to a halt at Enkeseruna Village in Kajiado Central due to a dispute between two group ranches, Torosei and Meto, both claiming ownership of the mining site.
Members of the Torosei Group ranch forcefully entered the mining site, suspending all activities until the boundary disagreement is resolved.
The disputed land has been at the center of a boundary dispute since 2018, with both group ranches asserting their ownership claims. Andrew Sempeta from Torosei expressed frustration, stating that the Meto group had started mining activities on the disputed land instead of waiting for a resolution to the dispute.
Sempeta called on the Kajiado Lands Department to promptly intervene and establish clear boundaries to ease the mounting tension between the two groups.
Isiah Lesisa echoed Sempeta’s sentiments, emphasizing that no investor should be allowed to conduct any activities on the contested land until the Lands Department conducts a survey and demarcates clear boundaries.
Kajiado County frequently experiences land dispute cases, often revolving around boundary conflicts and double allocation of title deeds. In response to the issue, the Alternative Justice System was launched in Kajiado in 2021 by Chief Justice Martha Koome to help reduce the backlog of land dispute cases in court. Since its introduction, over 600 land dispute cases have been successfully resolved, according to Kajiado Land CECM Hamilton Parseina.