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Masaka hospital revives effort to reclaim encroached land
Masaka Regional Referral Hospital main gate. PHOTO | FILE
What you need to know:
- Records indicate that the hospital’s land, originally 49 acres in 2007, has been reduced to 39 acres due to encroachment.
- The number of squatters on the hospital land has increased from 70 to 300, driven by population pressure and the high demand for land in the city.
The management of Masaka Regional Referral Hospital has renewed efforts to remove encroachers from its land, as encroachments threaten future expansion plans.
Records indicate that the hospital’s land, originally 49 acres in 2007, has been reduced to 39 acres due to encroachment.
The number of squatters on the hospital land has increased from 70 to 300, driven by population pressure and the high demand for land in the city.
Mr Charles Tumushiime, the hospital’s principal administrator, revealed that they have sought advice from the Attorney General on how to deal with the encroachers.
“The encroachment rate is alarming, having grown to more than 20 percent recently. If nothing is done, we will be left with nothing. We have raised this issue with several stakeholders, including the Attorney General, whom we recently petitioned, hoping to secure eviction orders to remove the encroachers,” Mr Tumushiime stated in an interview on Wednesday.
He added that the hospital is also considering erecting a fence around its land to prevent further encroachment.
“As management, we have found it difficult to remove the encroachers since measures like involving the police have not been effective. We are now seeking about Shs2 billion to fence off the land to improve the security of the hospital and the remaining land,” Dr James Elima, the hospital director, said.
Masaka hospital plans several construction projects, including building an interns’ hostel, staff quarters, and other facilities that require land. In 2019, the then-hospital management, led by Dr Nathan Onyanchi, had considered registering all squatters after a boundary-opening exercise.
However, this plan stalled following the transfer of Dr Onyanchi and principal administrator Edward Kabuye.
Local leaders have urged the government to compensate the squatters before evicting them, noting that some possess land titles.
“It would be unfair to simply evict them without compensation. The government has the Land Fund, and our people here could benefit from such a programme,” Mr Richard Walugembe, chairperson of Kasijagirwa, said.
Encroachment
Masaka Hospital currently sits on 49 acres, but 10 of these are occupied by encroachers who have erected permanent structures and initiated farming activities.
The hospital, established in 1927 as a treatment centre for syphilis, was elevated to a referral status in 1995, serving districts in the greater southern region.
Since then, it has faced numerous challenges, including limited space to accommodate increasing patient numbers, inadequate drug supplies, and irregular power supply.
Masaka hospital revives effort to reclaim encroached land
BY MALIK FAHD JJINGO
masaka: The management of Masaka Regional Referral Hospital has renewed efforts to remove encroachers from its land, as encroachments threaten future expansion plans.
Records indicate that the hospital’s land, originally 49 acres in 2007, has been reduced to 39 acres due to encroachment.
The number of squatters on the hospital land has increased from 70 to 300, driven by population pressure and the high demand for land in the city.
Mr Charles Tumushiime, the hospital’s principal administrator, revealed that they have sought advice from the Attorney General on how to deal with the encroachers.
“The encroachment rate is alarming, having grown to more than 20 percent recently. If nothing is done, we will be left with nothing. We have raised this issue with several stakeholders, including the Attorney General, whom we recently petitioned, hoping to secure eviction orders to remove the encroachers,” Mr Tumushiime stated in an interview on Wednesday.
He added that the hospital is also considering erecting a fence around its land to prevent further encroachment.
“As management, we have found it difficult to remove the encroachers since measures like involving the police have not been effective. We are now seeking about Shs2 billion to fence off the land to improve the security of the hospital and the remaining land,” Dr James Elima, the hospital director, said.
Masaka hospital plans several construction projects, including building an interns’ hostel, staff quarters, and other facilities that require land. In 2019, the then-hospital management, led by Dr Nathan Onyanchi, had considered registering all squatters after a boundary-opening exercise.
However, this plan stalled following the transfer of Dr Onyanchi and principal administrator Edward Kabuye.
Local leaders have urged the government to compensate the squatters before evicting them, noting that some possess land titles.
“It would be unfair to simply evict them without compensation. The government has the Land Fund, and our people here could benefit from such a programme,” Mr Richard Walugembe, chairperson of Kasijagirwa, said.
Encroachment
Masaka Hospital currently sits on 49 acres, but 10 of these are occupied by encroachers who have erected permanent structures and initiated farming activities.
The hospital, established in 1927 as a treatment centre for syphilis, was elevated to a referral status in 1995, serving districts in the greater southern region.
Since then, it has faced numerous challenges, including limited space to accommodate increasing patient numbers, inadequate drug supplies, and irregular power supply.
