Land rights training saved me from eviction, says Embu woman in court over 10 acres
Laws on land registration allow one to seek ownership of a parcel they have occupied for 12 consecutive years. Lilian and her family have lived on disputed land for over 40 years.
What you need to know:
- Laws on land registration allow one to seek ownership of a parcel they have occupied for 12 consecutive years.
- Lilian* and her husband occupied 10 acres whose owner had died without leaving behind a widow or child.
In 1982, Lilian* and her husband occupied 10 acres in Mbeere South, Embu County.
The owner had just died and he neither had a wife nor children. In their 40 years of stay on the parcel, no one had shown up to claim ownership.
Then last year, someone visited their home armed with a seven-day eviction notice.
“He claimed we were illegally occupying his land, claiming he was the rightful owner,” Lilian says.
“When I asked him where he has been all this while, he said he had recently bought the land from the owner.”
Later, Lilian found out a wealthy individual, who was aware of the status of the land, had sold it to him.
Unbowed
But Lilian stood her ground. Why? She knew her rights.
“On the day they visited, my husband was so shaken. He was afraid they would kill us. That night, he slept at our neighbour’s. When he returned the following morning, he insisted we leave, but I said we were going nowhere.”
In 2012, Lilian had attended a women’s empowerment forum in which a lawyer informed them of their land tenure rights.
“He had told us you can own land if you have occupied it for 12 years. We had settled on the land for more than 20 years. Where was he all this time?”
Laws on land registration allow one to seek ownership of a parcel they have occupied for 12 consecutive years.
Section 7 of the Limitations of Actions Act on actions to recover land reads: “An action may not be brought by any person to recover land after the end of 12 years from the date on which the right of action accrued to him or, if it first accrued to some person through whom he claims, to that person.”
Information power
Backed up by the knowledge, Lilian reached out to the non-governmental organisation that facilitated the training.
“I requested a pro-bono lawyer and my case was lodged at Siakago Law Courts. Whenever the lawyer has to represent me in court and I have no money for his transport, I call the organisation and they cover the cost,” she says.
“Had it not been for the awareness, I’d have moved out immediately.”
*Name changed to protect her privacy.
