…signed order in official capacity not as a private purchaser

The Housing Ministry and Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) has rejected claims that President Dr Irfaan Ali personally purchased approximately 182 acres of land at Plantation Onderneeming, describing the assertion as a misinterpretation of Order No. 180 of 2026. In a statement on Sunday, the Ministry said the lands identified in the Order are Government-owned lands held under Transport No. 130 of 1876 and that there had been no personal purchase or acquisition of the lands by the President. According to the Ministry, Order No. 180 is the first step in bringing the identified lands under the Land Registration system, which will facilitate the legal processes required for Certificates of Title to eventually be issued to beneficiaries. The Ministry explained that Ali, in his capacity as the Minister responsible for housing, is authorised to sign the Order and that his execution of the document constitutes an exercise of his statutory responsibility.
It said this should not be interpreted as evidence that the President personally purchased or acquired the lands. The two parcels covered by the Order are earmarked for separate housing purposes. Parcel 936, measuring approximately 26.85 acres, is a regularised area occupied by informal settlers. The Ministry said bringing the parcel under the Land Registration system will advance the process for eligible residents to obtain Certificates of Title and secure legal ownership of the lands they occupy. Parcel 1793, comprising approximately 155.13 acres and previously identified as Block “CHPA 3”, is intended for a new housing development. The registration process is therefore required to facilitate the eventual issuance of Certificates of Title to beneficiaries within the development. The Ministry said the combined acreage of the two parcels is approximately 182 acres, but maintained that the land remains Government-owned. It was responding to an article published by an online entity, which according to the Ministry, created the impression that Ali had personally purchased the lands. “The lands are Government-owned, the Order is part of a statutory land-registration process, and its purpose is directly connected to housing development and providing beneficiaries with secure ownership documents,” the Ministry said. The Ministry also criticised the interpretation of the Order, arguing that it turned an administrative and legal process intended to regularise land ownership and facilitate housing development into a claim of personal land acquisition by the President. It called the online entity to correct what it described as a false and misleading impression and urged greater care in interpreting statutory instruments dealing with public lands. They maintained that the President was acting in his official capacity as the responsible Minister rather than as a private purchaser of the lands.