Minister Nabakooba eases eviction tension in Kagadi District.

The Minister of Lands and Urban Development, Hon. Judith Nabakooba has assured residents with absentee landlords in Kagadi that no one will evict them from their bibanja. This comes at the backdrop of fears mounting among residents in the district due to looming evictions orchestrated by unscrupulous people claiming to own the land.

Nabakooba made the assurance while presiding over the belated Women’s Day celebrations in Kagadi District held at Mabaale playground in Mabaale Town Council Kagadi District on April 28 under the theme ‘Innovation and Technology for Gender Equality’.
“The government has established systematic land demarcation and has compensated all landlords to ensure that Ugandans can settle on the land permanently," she said, assuring residents to settle on their land without fear of being evicted.
Minister Nabakooba also said her ministry is working hard to ensure that all bibanja holders in Kagadi are supported to acquire full ownership of their land.
“The arrangement is also ongoing for Kagadi district and over 1600 land titles will be handed over to the locals in the coming month of May,” she revealed.
According to Nabakooba, people in Kagadi have been living on land with absentee landlords for long and the government has paid off these land titles but people have continued to effect evictions for selfish interests.

Ms Janepher Kyomuhendo Mbabazi, the Kagadi Woman Member of Parliament explained to the minister that for some time, they (local leaders) have been making several attempts to end the eviction threats in the district but action is moving slowly.
She tasked the minister to expedite the process so that people can work for prosperity without fear of being evicted.
Kagadi District Deputy RDC, Benjamin Tumusiime reported to the minister that his office has four court orders asking them to evict people. He asked the minister to swiftly intervene and save the people who are at the verge of losing their land.
Nabakooba however asked the office of the RDC not to implement the land eviction court orders saying that the president has put a ban on evictions and that no one should be evicted from their land.
In her remarks on the commemoration of Women's Day, Nabakooba highlighted the barriers affecting women, especially in the struggle to create wealth. She said women have been barred by cultures and that in some cultures, women in a number of communities are treated as people that do not have a right to own land.
She condemned land fragmentation and urged families to agree on shares, keep the land together,engage in modern agriculture and share profits.
“Embrace the four-acre model and the Intensive farming as guided by His Excellency the President of the Republic of Uganda. This model works well even when one has a small piece of land especially those in urban settings. It is closely linked to urban farmers and the Parish Development Model,” she said, challenging them to go out and be active participants in the journey of wealth creation.
Ms Florence Kugonza, the chairperson Women Council, Kagadi District shared that they have been facing several challenges such as lack of transport means in mobilizing women to engage in wealth creation programmes.
She called upon the government to think about facilitating the women councils so that they can effectively serve the nation.
In Kagadi, Minister Nabakooba also paid a courtesy visit to African Rural University, an all-women’s university in Rural Transformation. Here, she met with Dr Mwalimu Mushehse, the University’s founder and Vice Chancellor.
Dr Mwalimu explained to the minister how women have reasons to celebrate the day because they have for long been marginalized and their being somewhere now has been greatly spearheaded by the NRM government.