KCCA council votes to repossess plots in Old taxi park

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Kampala Capital City Authority-KCCA council has resolved that the Authority repossess the plots of land allocated to private developers in the Old taxi park, saying they acquired them illegally.

On Sunday, private developers under the protection of security officers stormed the newly renovated old taxi park and cordoned off four plots of land. They blocked the main exit of the taxi park. The development affected a number of stages including Mengo, Mukono Coasters Stage A and B, Ntinda, Luzira, Mbuya, Kawolo-Lugazi, Bweyogerere Jokas, Muyenga, Ggaba, Kansanga and Kiruddu among others.

During the KCCA council meeting on Wednesday, the City Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago informed the councillors that after Sunday’s events, his office engaged the KCCA Executive Director Dorothy Kisaka, about the matter who informed him that the authority was implementing what is in the Memorandum of Understanding between the Central Government and the developers.

In the MoU signed in 2017, it was agreed that the developers are allowed to use their land as KCCA plans to compensate them before carrying out any developments.

According to records at KCCA, in 2000, the defacto Kampala City Council (KCC) obtained a 99-year lease from the Kampala District Land Board on that piece of land to construct a taxi park. KCC later subleased part of the land to 15 developers in 2005.

But Lukwago says that the sublease was executed without permission from the now-defunct Country and Town Planning Board for change of use as was required under the Town and Country Planning Act, which has since been repealed.

Because of this, Lukwago says that the MoU between the government and the developers is null and void given the illegalities associated with their acquisition.

Although the park sits on 3.01 hectares, only 0.949 hectares belong to KCCA while the remaining 2.1 hectares belong to private developers. Lukwago also informed the council that the KCCA technical wing has declined to avail copies of MoUs entered by the government and KCCA for scrutiny.

Since 2000, KCCA has entered several MoUs with the developers after being dragged to the court for failing to vacate the land. In January 2017, ten of the 15 companies entered a consent judgement with KCCA and agreed to develop the park collectively in accordance with the design and structural master plan, which were to be approved by KCCA within twelve months after signing a consent judgement.

They also agreed that after approval of the plan, KCCA would compensate any of the above developers who would have lost part or all their land. Again in December 2020, KCCA entered an MoU with the developers agreeing that KCCA would grant them (developers) vacant possession of their respective properties immediately after renovating the park before taxis can return there such that the developers develop their plots further.

But this didn’t happen prompting some companies to go back to court to block the opening of the park which they successfully did. Council also learnt that when the park was opened in January, KCCA had entered an MoU with the developers that they would repossess their plots.

Lukwago told the council that the technical wing has not furnished them with any of the MoU and hence recommended that a resolution be passed compelling the office of the Executive Director to present the MoUs to the City Executive Committee.

Jeremiah Keeya Mwanje, an advocate at KCCA says the authority should sue the developers who acquired the land without following the law because KCC, which had a lease to construct a taxi park in the area could not sublease the land for any other purposes. He also wants management to assess the cost of the destruction on the carpet and demand compensation from developers.

KCCA Deputy Speaker Nasur Masaba, said that it’s unfortunate for technical staff to deny the political leaders information regarding the MoUs. He adds that these are public documents that should be availed to them to ably exercise their mandate as policymakers in Kampala.

The Deputy Executive Director Eng. David Luyimbazi told the council that they are not sure who cordoned off part of the park and dug holes there. He says developers have since denied responsibility.

He however added that KCCA and the developers have agreed that the latter repossess their land as KCCA plans to compensate them in a period of 12 months. They were asked to put up only temporary structures after following the building regulations of KCCA.

Three developers Dick kit from KDS Company, Emmanuel Lukyamuzi of Lukyamuzi Investments, and Etimark, Kagolo from Kagodo farmers attended the meeting on Wednesday. Dick Kizito says a group of six developers including himself want to utilize their land for business and don’t want compensation.

KCCA has started filling the holes drilled by the developer on Sunday and removing the barricades. The renovation of the old taxi park cost over Shillings 10.9 billion.

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