Kiboga Leaders Task Gov't To Regulate Village Chairpersons' Power

 Local leaders in Kiboga District have called upon the government to check powers assumed by village chairpersons in a bid to reduce the increasing number of land conflicts in Uganda.

 The leaders, led by the Resident District Commissioner, Moses Ddumba Kakooza, argue that local council chairpersons, exercise a lot of greed by conniving with land grabbers to steal people’s land.

 “I have cases in my office where village chairpersons sold land without the knowledge of the owners. In one scenario, the chairperson sold the land twice,” he told the lands minister, Judith Nabakooba, on January 9 during her field tour to Kyanamuyonjo Village in Kyomya Sub-county, to track the progress of the Parish Development Model (PDM), and addressing land matters.

He is advocating for a law guiding the issuance of land agreements, with at least three signatures of local council leaders approving the selling agreement documents before they are handed to the owners. Without revealing the name, Mr Kakooza, said there is a village where a chairperson sold land twice after the first buyers went abroad and left the land idle.

 “A widow and her children bought 10 acres on the land. When the owners returned from abroad, he suggested we evict them, which I cannot do.” Ms Nabakooba assured the public that she will analyse the issue and make a conclusive decision as her ministry undertakes amendments to the National Land Policy, to see how the powers of village chairpersons can be regulated.

“In the amendments we are trying to do, we are trying to see how we can put LCs in their correct positions because sometimes they assume a lot of powers when it comes to land,” she promised, stressing that currently, there is no clear law. “We have seen LCs selling land which does not belong to them. We have seen them selling the same piece of land to more than two parties and yet they are not the actual owners.

” During these amendments, the ministry will decide on whether to make a law or regulations that will guide these chairpersons when it comes to land. Selling land that does not belong to you is attributed to greed among these chairpersons and if a law is introduced, it is likely to hold them accountable when it comes to land conflicts.

 Mr Kefa Kiwanuka, the member of parliament representing Kiboga East Constituency, blamed all shortfalls in the land sector that have caused conflicts on police, resident state attorney, chairpersons, and court. He told the minister these should be held accountable for conspiring with land grabbers to fraudulently acquire land through corruption. “You can call a police officer for help and when you go on the ground, they promise to stand with you by providing security but connive with thieves whom they protect to even destroy people’s property,” he cried out.

Mr Kefa said locals tend to claim that National Resistance Movement members are the ones behind land grabbing which accusations are not true, asserting that even the long-time cadres have had their land taken by the “rich”. Kiboga is one of the districts overwhelmed by conflicts in greater Mubende and efforts are underway as assured by the lands minister, for the government to buy them land through Land Fund to help the wananchi obtain full ownership where they are currently squatters.

Ms Mariam Nakujja, a resident of Bamusuuta village, reported to the minister that she is one of the victims of chairpersons taking over land belonging to their residents. When her husband died in March last year, he left behind properties that were generating money for taking care of the family but her landlordship was cut short, after the area chairperson intercepted and sold off the properties. She was now left helpless without any source of income to get fees for the children.

 Meanwhile, to date, Kiboga District has received Shs12.3 billion PDM cash since the program’s inception in the Financial Year 2021/2022.

Out of this Shs 12.1 billion has been disbursed to 12,128 households in the 58 parishes.