School closed over land dispute in Kilifi

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Empty classroom at Timboni Primary School./FILE

Kilifi, KENYA: There is tension at Timboni -Shariani area in Kilifi county following a land dispute where residents are accusing  private developers of wanting to grab their land.

On Tuesday, residents in the area clashed with police officers whom the residents have accused of siding with the developers; leading to  closure of a primary school and a few arrests.

Timboni Primary School; which is found on the land, was  closed indefinitely after angry parents stormed the school claiming they are tired of land being taken by grabbers.

Speaking to Baraka FM over the phone Mr. Kenneth Kiriba a Timboni resident, said properties were destroyed during the tussle between residents and police.

“These are land grabbers disguising as private developers from one of the leading parastatals at the Coast, wanting to grab our land,” said Mr. Kiriba.

The residents are saying they have presented a case in court and the person claiming to own the land has failed to show up more than three times.

“We have gone to court seeking further clarification about the issue, but they have failed to show up, and now they are using police and land dealers to grab our land”, added a Mr. Philemon Mwangira –Timboni resident.

According to the residents, they have lived on the piece of land for over 100 years where they have done a lot of investment.

The dispute has been reported to have been brewing for the past few months and the residents are appealing to Kilifi Governor Amason Jeffah Kingi and the Chairman National Land Commission (NLC) Dr. Mohammed Swazuri to intervene.

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