New details emerge on Museveni’s grabbed land 

A committee set up to investigate how part of a 200-acre piece of land President Museveni donated to Lutunku Community Polytechnic in Sembabule District was grabbed by unscrupulous individuals has finally released its findings.

Last September, Sembabule Resident District commissioner (RDC) Caleb Tukaikiriza Tukaikiriza constituted a four-member committee chaired by Mr William Rudunyonyoli to investigate the matter. Mr Rudunyonyoli   is one of the witnesses who signed the President’s agreement during the purchase of the land in 1997. Other committee members included; Mr Alfred Nunu, the chairperson of Kyarutageija Village; Mr Asuman Mwanje, the chairperson of Kawanda Sub-county; and Mr Faustine Ntambara, a resident who sold the land to the President.  The committee was tasked to carry out fresh boundary openings, register all sitting tenants, and submit a report to the district security committee. The land in question houses Lutunku Community Polytechnic, which is part of the presidential initiative to skill youth.

According Mr Tukaikiriza, the committee findings have revealed that Lutunku Community Polytechnic took possession of the land but never transferred it into the name of the institution, which exposed it to land grabbers.

Findings

 “The committee has discovered that the land is still registered in the name of Faustine Ntambara. Gh24We have also learnt Lukunku Community Polytechnic has four land titles –two are with Ministry of Education and the other two are at Uganda Land Commission,” he said in an interview on July 4

The probe committee findings also indicate that some of the people who grabbed the land started as tenants but have since constructed permanent buildings.

 Part of the land, according to findings, had been leased to local farmers to grow seasonal crops with each acre, fetching Shs100,000 per planting season.

Of the 122 acres remaining, 78 acres had been rented out to local farmers, according to the findings.

 “The committee recommended that all encroachers be evicted and many who were using it as farm land have since vacated,” Mr Tukaikiriza  said He said they are going to initiate negotiations with Moses Ninsiima, who the previous board of governors of the institution  leased another 3.5 acres of land owned by the polytechnic in Sembabule Town.

 “Our target is to recover all land belonging to Lukunku Community Polytechnic and use it to develop the institution.” he added

Mr Serapio Owukunda, the principal of the polytechnic, declined to comment on the matter, referring this publication to the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Education, Ms Ketty Lamaro.

Govt takes charge

“That issue is now above me, it was taken over by the Office of the President and he has since directed the Permanent secretary in the Ministry of  Education and that of Lands to ensure  that all our land titles are in the name of the institution ,” he said by telephone 

Ms Lamaro has not picked repeated telephone calls from this publication since Sunday despite efforts to reach out to her.

Ms Annet Kyalimpa, a councillor representing Kawanda Sub-county at Sembabule District, said some of the residents who have been using the institution’s land did so with full knowledge of the management.

 “If the previous administration did a mistake to lease the land and they now want it back, I support that idea because some people had started calling it theirs,” he said.

Authored by Al-Mahdi Ssenkabirwa & Brian Ssenyange