Police summon Kirumira over forgery of land agreement claims
City businessman Godfrey Kirumira
What you need to know:
- In a suit filed at Mukono High Court on November 29, 2021, Kirumira contends that he has been the registered proprietor of the land comprised in plots 392 and 393, respectively, for the past five years which he has fenced off.
Police in Mukono have summoned city businessman Godfrey Kirumira for allegedly forging a sales agreement for a 45-acre piece of land in the Namanve Industrial Park.
The Kampala-based businessman has been summoned together with one Andrew Muyonga to appear on Tuesday (May 24) at Seeta Police Station to record statements in respect to allegations of forgery and uttering false documents.
It is alleged that Kirumira on October 30, 2021 at Kolo village in Mukono knowingly and fraudulently uttered a false document (Kibanja sales agreement) on block 113 plot 142 at Mukono High Court, purporting he had bought it from one Yokana Mukasa Galikwoleka, whereas not.
Meanwhile, Muyonga is accused of forging a Kibanja sales agreement for the land in the same period.
“This office is investigating a case in which you are required to report at Police to assist in providing valuable information required in this matter,” states the summons issued last Friday and served to Meddie Katumba on behalf of Kirumira and Muyonga by D/CPL Jebrone Waiswa.
The two men are expected to be interrogated by D/IP William Malenge.
Complaint
The summons were prompted by lawyer George Kintu, who instituted a forgery case against the businessmen under Criminal Registration Book (CRB) number CRB 157/2022. This results from a trespass case filed at Mukono High Court by Kirumira against Minaz Karmali, the director of Liberty ICD Limited.
In his complaint, the advocate from George Kintu and Company Advocates, says Kirumira alleged to have bought a Kibanja from Galikwoleka at Kolo LCI, Nantabulirwa Parish, Goma Division Mukono district on October 30, 2017.
However, a death certificate from the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) submitted at Mukono High Court indicates that Galikwoleka, a shamba boy working for the late Charles Kagenya, died on July 20, 1996.
The lawyer contends that Kirumira attached to his court documents a sales agreement with Joseph Muwanguzi and Musa Hamuza listed as witnesses.
Arrest, confession
When Police arrested Muwonge, a builder, on April 10, 2022, he confessed to signing and placing his right-hand thumbprint on the sales agreement.
Muwonge disclosed that he was made to rewrite the sales agreement in his handwriting in November 2021 by the site supervisor Andrew Muyonga at Jokas Hotel in Bweyogerere, Wakiso District.
In his police statement, Muwonge says he drafted the Kibanja sales agreement dated October 30, 2017.
“I wrote the Kibanja sales agreement, copying from the copies Muyonga had,” Muwonge, who calls Kirumira his boss, stated in a police statement dated April 10, 2022.
He, however, says he did not see the buyer nor the seller while writing the agreement.
A police Fforensic report dated April 22, 2022, confirms that the thumbprint, writings and signature in the sales agreement are for Muwonge. It was signed by Sylvia Chelangat, the Acting Deputy Director of Forensic Services.
In his police statement, Musa Hamuza claims he was paid Shs100, 000 after signing the agreement on Muyonga’s advice. He, however, said he found out later that an Indian Minaz was complaining over the same land.
According to court documents, Rogers Mubangizi, a farmer and security guard at Quality Chemicals Limited says while at Jokas Hotel, Mubiru and Hamza Galiwango, the Uganda Investment Authority (UIA) director for Industrial Parks Development informed him of the deal and sought his assistance but he declined to sign the agreement.
He claims Galiwango and Felix Okere could be the brain behind the deal, saying his action is sabotaging development in the area and frustrating investors from their projects, which may result to unemployment.
The local investor says Liberty ICD has owned three freehold plots No. 1501, 1502 and 1425 on block 113 in Namanve for many years.
Influence
Minaz purports that Kirumira used influential people in government, especially in the lands department to orchestrate his dealings.
He accuses Kirumira of illegally transferring a title on plot 393 block 113 into his name. The title was used as collateral by Capital Ventures International Limited (CVIL) for a sh400m loan against 85-acre-land.
Court documents indicate that Kirumira paid stamp duty to Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) of Shs1.275m but CVIL had assessed a stamp duty of sh671.2m.
He says although Kirumira claims it is a Kibanja, there is no evidence of a landlord, payment of busulu and its history, maintaining that it is a freehold land that he acquired in November 2010.
Conflict
Despite the ongoing court case over the matter, Kirumira petitioned the deputy commissioner of lands, who summoned two parties (Prof Minaz and Kirumira) to hear the matter before he takes a decision to either cancel the title or not.
Kirumira speaks out
When contacted for a comment, Kirumira threatened to sue the journalist if he publishes the story, saying it is defamatory.
“Do you know whom I am. I will take you to court. Do not play with my name,” Kirumira said and switched off his phone.
In a suit filed at Mukono High Court on November 29, 2021, Kirumira contends that he has been the registered proprietor of the land comprised in plots 392 and 393, respectively, for the past five years which he has fenced off.
Kirumira therefore wants court to stop the investor from evicting him from the 46-acre piece of land.
