Land Cabinet Secretary Farida Karoney. FILE PHOTO | NMG
The public clamour for proper records, efficient service and
fraud control has made digitisation the buzzword at Ardhi House, the
Ministry of Land headquarters.
Every minister who has
served in the Land docket in the past decade has claimed having put
digitisation at the heart of his or her reform agenda.
The
most dramatic show of intent around this issue was the 10-day closure
of the Land Registry in May 2014 to allow for an audit of land records.
Charity Ngilu, the Cabinet Secretary for Land, said the closure was part
of wider reforms, including digitisation of land records.
That
reform process appeared to have either stalled or slowed down
significantly along the way, prompting another 10-day closure beginning
Monday.
It is tempting to cite the revolving-door appointments at Ardhi
House that haven’t allowed ministers to last long enough in office to
see their signature policies implemented as part of the problem.
Farida Karoney, the current Land minister, is the third person to serve in that docket in five years.
But
the one reason bureaucracy exists is to shield public policy and
service from such uncertainties brought about by political decisions.
Considering
the costs of its inefficient and fraud-prone land administration system
to the public, Ardhi House should digitise its land records once and
for all.
No comments :
Post a Comment