Kisumu County has boldly and forcefully denied rumors that a High Court decision has put a stop to its ongoing land rate collection activities, which have been making the rounds on social media and other platforms.
Through Deputy Governor Dr. Matthew Owili, the county administration rejected the accusations as “deliberate misinformation” meant to deceive the people and thwart efforts to raise money.
“This is not true,” the official statement read. “There have been calculated and deliberate misinformation campaigns alleging that the High Court in Kisumu has stopped the applicable rate collection by the County Government of Kisumu.”
The county insists that no such court order exists and clarified that the current land rate collection is both legal and active. The confusion, the county explained, stems from the ongoing court case Lake Region Traders Association vs Kisumu County Government.
In the ruling, the court only directed the county to continue using the previous valuation roll, not to stop collections altogether.
Labeling the misleading narrative as “misguided” and an act of economic sabotage, the county urged residents and businesses to ignore the falsehoods and continue fulfilling their tax obligations.
Dr. Owili reaffirmed that the administration under Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o had rolled out various incentives, including tax waivers, to encourage compliance and ease the burden on citizens.
To enhance transparency, the county expressed readiness to make all relevant court documents available to the public.
This tough stance comes as other counties, including Nairobi, intensify their revenue collection efforts. Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja has similarly defended strong measures against rent and land rate defaulters, including evictions from county housing after 15 years of non-payment.
