DNK International By Elizabeth Were,Nairobi.
The Environment and Land Court based at Milimani,Nairobi has been petitioned to compel the government to implement a Cabinet resolution waiving penalties and interest on loans taken by low income settlers in over 520 settlement schemes across 26 counties.
The petition was filed by the non governmental organization Sheria Mtaani through its chairperson, Advocate Shadrack Wambui.
Wambui said the petition seeks urgent ex-parte intervention, arguing that delay in enforcing it is causing undue financial hardship to settlers.
The organization claims the Cabinet, in a resolution publicized on November 11, 2025, directed that accrued penalties and interest on loans for low income settlers be waived to relieve them of mounting financial burdens.
Advocate Wambui, in a supporting affidavit, noted that almost three months since the resolution, little progress has been made, particularly by the Ministry of Lands, leading to continued accumulation of interest and penalties.
“The continuing accrual of such charges is plunging the settlers into a financial dungeon, obliging them to remit both principal amounts and mounting interest, despite government measures intended to ease their burden,” Wambui said.
The application requests the court to declare the Cabinet waiver legal and issue orders compelling government officials, including the Chief of Staff, Cabinet Secretaries for Lands and National Treasury, and the National Lands Commission, to ensure immediate implementation.
Additionally, the petition seeks decentralization of the National Lands Commission’s services, to allow settlers in remote areas access to land related services without traveling to Nairobi.
The NGO emphasizes that without urgent court intervention, the intended relief from the waiver will be nullified, and the beneficiaries will continue to face financial prejudice.
The petition also calls for a refund to any settler who may have paid accrued penalties after the waiver’s effective date.
Sheria Mtaani argues that its role is to protect the rights of marginalized citizens, ensuring government resolutions aimed at economic relief are enforced.
The matter is set for hearing later this year, and the organization is seeking costs of the application to be borne by the respondents.
[DNK-International@January 21,2026]
