Koskei Narrates How He Lost Millions in a Fraudulent Land Deal
Head of Public Service Felix Koskei has shared a detailed account of how he reportedly lost millions of shillings in what he described as a fraudulent and manipulated land transaction, blaming the incident on interference and alteration of official land records within government systems.
Koskei explained the incident during a consultative meeting held on April 15 with officials from the State Department for Lands and Physical Planning, alongside other agencies involved in land administration.
The discussion focused on long-standing challenges affecting land ownership, registration, and record management in the country.
According to Koskei, he had intended to purchase a parcel of land and ensured that all normal legal procedures were followed before making any payment.
He stated that he engaged a lawyer who carried out the necessary due diligence, including conducting an official land search, physically visiting ministry offices in Eldoret, and confirming ownership details both in written records and through verbal verification with officials at the relevant offices.
Koskei said that based on these checks, everything appeared legitimate and properly documented at the time. With confidence in the process, he proceeded to complete the transaction and paid the required amount for the land.
However, he later discovered that the land he had purchased was actually owned by a lecturer from Moi University. This revelation came after his lawyer conducted further verification, only to find inconsistencies between the earlier records and the actual legal ownership of the land.
What made the situation more alarming, according to Koskei, was that within a short period of about two weeks, the official land documents—including the green card and other registry files—were allegedly altered.
These changes reflected different ownership details, despite the fact that the original owner still held a valid title deed proving their legal claim to the property.
Koskei directly accused some officials within the land administration system under the State Department for Lands and Physical Planning of being involved in manipulating records. He claimed that certain staff members misled parties involved in the transaction, falsely confirmed ownership details, and even validated searches that should have reflected the correct legal status of the land.
He further alleged that instead of ensuring transparency, some officials were responsible for changing registry information after the transaction had already taken place, leading to confusion, loss of money, and disputes over rightful ownership.
Koskei described the experience as not just an isolated incident but a reflection of broader systemic weaknesses in the land administration system.
He pointed out issues such as missing files, inconsistent records, conflicting descriptions of the same parcels of land, and the possibility of corruption in otherwise straightforward land transactions.
He emphasized that such problems undermine trust in public institutions and make land ownership risky for ordinary citizens who rely on official records when making major financial decisions.
To address these challenges, Koskei strongly advocated for full digitization of land services. He argued that moving all land records and processes to secure digital systems would reduce human interference, close loopholes that allow manipulation, and ensure that records remain consistent and traceable.
He also called for stronger safeguards to prevent double allocation of land, improved coordination between survey, registration, adjudication, and planning departments, and stricter accountability mechanisms for officials handling land records.
In addition, Koskei stressed that land services should be free from informal payments, influence, or corruption at any stage of processing.
He urged reforms that would ensure every Kenyan accessing land services receives a fair, transparent, and reliable outcome without needing personal connections or unofficial facilitation.
He concluded by emphasizing that land ownership must always remain secure, records must be accurate and trustworthy, and any form of misconduct within the system should be met with firm consequences to restore public confidence in land administration.
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