Mr Niraj Shah speaks to journalists outside the demolished remains of his home along School Lane in Westlands on November 8, 2022. PHOTO | FRANCIS NDERITU
The Nairobi County Assembly is finalizing its investigations into the controversy surrounding a parcel of land in Westlands, Nairobi.
On Tuesday, the County Planning and Housing Committee summoned the ICT Director to reveal the identities of people who change the ownership of the land in 2014.
The controversy surrounding the land caught the attention of the public last year when the auctioneers were sent to demolish the property sitting on the land owned by Niraj Shah and his wife Avani Shah.
However, the director snubbed the meeting and was represented by Mr Robert Okiri, who is the System Analyst in ICT Department.
Mr Okiri admitted that the ownership of the land was done within the department by unknown individuals who will only be revealed after the department gets the backup data from the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA).
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The committee led by Kitisuru MCA Alvin Olando Palapala said the committee has given the ICT department one week to submit the data before them, failure to which they will begin a censure motion on the department and request an external audit.
In his defence, Mr Okwiri said the department cannot be victimized since many things happened after the custody of the data was moved to KRA which has now introduced a new system.
“It will not be fair for the ICT department to be victimized given this situation. You have to understand that many things went to the play to reach where we are. These data were once in the custody of ICT, later it was transferred to KRA,” Mr Okiri said.
Mr Okiri said the information that the committee is looking for is not in their custody but his remarks were shot down on the spot by Mrs Avani Shah who said that by then, the custody was with the country department of ICT.
“This information happened in 2014, when it was changed it was in the custody of the county at that particular time. KRA has nothing to do with this,” Mrs Shah said.
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The changes happened while Mr Okiri was in charge but failed to reveal the people who were responsible for the transfer of ownership.
The committee members accused Mr Okiri of taking them back and forth and failing to give them what they are looking for.
With the backup data, the analyst said that they will be able to tell the people who accessed the records on given dates and those who were working.
Nairobi Minority Leader Mr Anthony Kiragu, who is a member of the committee, said by revealing the person who accessed the records, they will be able to assure Nairobi residents that their properties are safe.
The records seen by Nairobi News show that the transaction of the land ownership was done in February 2014, and updated in October of the same year to read as James Wambugu Gichuki and Samuel Mbugua Kariuki from its initial owner Mr Batuk L.L Shah.
The owners of the land have now asked the assembly to speed up the matter and declare them as the real owners of the property.
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