By MN Reporter
Outgoing Migori governor Okoth Obado managed to lease out over 1,000 acres of land in Nyatike sub-county to two firms before leaving office.
Obado and his cabinet pushed through the allocation to Al-Fateem Mining Company and Al Naqel Holding for mining and sisal production respectively according to documents seen by Migori News.
All the land are under a parcel Muhuru/Kadem 498 which was inherited by the county government from the defunct South Nyanza council and are found in Macalder-Kanyarwanda ward.
The transactions were first approved by Obado’s cabinet and county secretary Christopher Rusana wrote to the second assembly for approval through the Lands and Physical Planning Committee chaired by former Wasweta 2 MCA Patrick Aran.
AL-Fateem Mining Company working under a mining license number PR 948-0062363 wrote to the governor after it “expressed interest to undertake tailing activities in the county,” a letter which was directed to the assembly on May 31, 2022.
From June 10-12 2022 the assembly committee retreated to Kisumu where they approved the cabinet decision to give 100 acres of land to company to recycle gold and copper waste for ten years.
On May 25, Obado held a cabinet meeting which approved the lease and day letter on May 26 Rusana signed official letter which was directed to the assembly.
Documents seen by Migori News showed that the company was ready to invest Ksh!.3billion as initial capital to be able to process at least three tones of ores for copper and gold a day and “partner with county government through a social cooperate responsibility.”
That was according to the company’s general director Musa Mohammed Issa Mohammed.
The company is based in Westlands, Nairobi.
In a second deal, 1,000 acres from the same parcel will be taken up by Al Naqel Holding for sisal planting after Aran’s committee visited the site on April 8, 2022
“The company has revolutionized the socio-economic activities of Nyatike sub-county by creating opportunities that increase wealth and tackle poverty and under employment in the county,” Aran said in the report.
The company had requested to Obado 1,500-2,000 acres of land for a lease of 25 years to establish nuclear plantation for sisal farming.
On April 8 2021, Obado and his cabinet approved the allocation of the land
The company is registered under PVT/2016/016514 on June 29, 2016 and has three three directors with work in Migori and Homa Bay where it said in official letter that they have a capacity to produce 600-1200 metric tines of sisal fibber per year.
It added that 400 families in the region directly benefit from them.
While issuing the lands, Aran cautioned that Migori is yet to create the county public land leasing policy and any official allocation should be done through the National Lands Commission.
