The National Assembly’s Public Investments Committee on Commercial Affairs and Energy has expressed concerns about continued delay in resolution of a dispute on ownership of two strategic parcels of land within the Kenyatta International Convention Center (KICC).

Chairperson, Hon. David Pkosing (Pokot South) asked the Cabinet Secretary for Lands, Hon. Alice Wahome and, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at the National Land Commission (NLC) Ms. Kabale Tache to appear before the Committee on Thursday next week to shed more light on the stalemate that has put KICC at loggerheads with the Nairobi City County Government and the Office of the President.

This emerged during a roundtable meeting between the Committee, the KICC management, NLC officials and representatives from the Ministry of Tourism regarding the stalemate reported by the Office of the Auditor General (OAG) in the Convention's audited accounts for Financial year 2020/2021.

According to the OAG, the Nairobi County Government is laying claim to the land at KICC adjacent to Harambee House that hosts Garden Square Restaurant.

The Auditor- General further raised concerns about a letter drafted by the Head of Public Service during the Year under review, indicating that Comesa Grounds adjacent to the Supreme Court which hosts the iconic portrait of founding President Mzee Jomo Kenyatta had been gazetted as a public monument.

Hon. Pkosing said this was a serious query as KICC stands to suffer hefty losses in assets, if the two parcels are not placed under the Convention's ownership, as they are not included in the stated value of KICC land totaling Kshs. 2.2Billion which only relates to the block where the main building tower stands.

"This is a very weighty issue. Everybody including my constituents in the village know KICC is Government land, we must speedily get to the bottom of this matter," Hon. Pkosing said.

According to KICC Acting CEO, Ms. Patricia Ondeng, the Convention's management had written to NLC for allocation of the contentious land on July 8, 2022 but was yet to receive any formal response. She told the Committee that even efforts to be formally allocated the land surrounding the tower block had also proved futile.

Members noted that ownership and management of the KICC as well as its surrounding land space was a matter of National Security as it sits on what has been demarcated as Government Square, donating spaces adjacent to Parliament, the Office of the President, the Supreme Court and other Key Government offices within Harambee Avenue