The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Masaka, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Buganda Parliamentary Caucus has called for a special inquiry into the allocation of 3.6 square miles of land to private investors for the palm oil growing project in Masaka district. The contested land is home to close to 1,000 residents of Nakigga, Birinzi, and Kasanje villages in Bukakata sub-county.
The settlers are being asked to vacate the land to paveway for the growing of palm oil trees under the National Vegetable Oil Development Project-NVODP by the government. However, the Buganda Parliamentary Caucus under the leadership of the Butambala County MP, Mohammad Muwanga Kivumbi, want the project halted following a petition by the residents contesting the manner in which the said land was acquired.
The caucus conducted a spot visit to the disputed land and listened to the plight of the affected residents who were given a three-month ultimatum to relocate their properties to pave way for the palm oil project, which will be spearheaded by BIDCO Uganda Limited.
Mathias Lukwago, one of the affected residents said that they are being forced off the land they have occupied for decades without adequate compensation as bonafide occupants who are protected by law. According to Lukwago, their land is being claimed by businessmen Fabiano Matovu, John Mugunga, and Pastor Samuel Kakande, who stealthily obtained freehold certificates.
“We are currently being threatened by their agents who include local security personnel that regularly patrol the villages. Some of our colleagues are being coerced to sign for compensation fees of 750,000 shillings as compensation for every acre of land,” he said.
Muwanga Kivumbi said that they are interested in establishing how the private individuals obtained freehold land titles against the interests of the bonafide occupants. He asked Masaka Resident District Commissioner, Teopista Ssenkungu to halt any transactions on the disputed land to allow for investigations of how the land was transferred from the public into freehold ownership, without catering for the interest of the occupants.
Mathias Mpuuga, the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament and Nyendo-Mukungwe Division MP, also questioned the rationale of seeking to evict hundreds of residents who would instead support the project as out growers. He said that besides pressing the Minster of Lands to commission an investigation into how such a big chunk of land was transferred and shared among three people against thousands of residents, they are also considering helping the occupants to seek legal redress.
Teopista Ssenkungu, the Masaka Resident District Commissioner said that he has no problem with the calls for an inquiry into the dispute as long all the parties are accorded a fair hearing. According to Ssekungu, after long negotiations, the occupants through their registered cooperative society willfully consented to the land transfers before the certificates of ownership were issued to the landlords who are also eventually leasing the land to the palm oil growing company.
He said that the available records indicate that the complainants were given time to present documents of how they settled on the land but in vain. Ssekungu said that the settlers are being compensated for their gardens and grazing fields.
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