WAKISO, UGANDA: At least 100 families are facing eviction from three different villages in Mende sub-county, Wakiso District.
More than 20 of these are facing eviction from a 12-acres of land at Banda Village and 60 families are facing eviction from Mabombwe village. Another group of residents at Bakka village are allegedly being evicted from the land they have lived in for decades after a purported landlord destroyed their crops and houses.
It is alleged that without any documentation for proof of ownership and or court order, a group of land brokers stormed the villages and destroyed acreages of food crops, trees and coffee plantations as well as houses.
Mende Sub County leaders allege that the brokers connive with security personnel in Wakiso District to take over chunks of land without following the due process of law. They said that the evictions are being conducted without court orders and in violation of the presidential directive that stopped evictions across the country.
Birungi Mathias Ssemujju, a councillor at Mende Sub-County accused authorities in the district of backing the evictions by protecting the perpetrators because when the matters are reported to the various offices, no action is taken.
According to Ssemujju, the brokers and purported landlords cause the arrest of occupants and they are remanded to prison on charges of criminal trespass. Ssemujju said that the perpetrators of the ongoing evictions are using police protection without any court order.
At Mabombwe, Ssemujju said that the sub-county leadership have since mobilized the occupants to resist any forceful takeover of their land.
Mende Sub County Chairperson Peter Ntume said revealed that the brokers and land grabbers are targeting Mende Sub County because the area had remained intact with chunks of virgin land. He says that the elderly in the area are duped into signing questionable agreements purporting to sell their areas.
Citing the case of Mabombwe village, Kaliiti Parish, Ntume said that the brokers have forged letters of administration to acquire special certificates of title while in some instances, the fraudsters have acquired overlapping titles issued by the Wakiso District land office. In cases where they do not present the fake documents, Ntume says, they have used armed personnel to threaten the occupants.
Wakiso Resident District Commissioner – RDC Justine Mbabazi said that the destruction of property at Banda and Bakka villages was conducted while she was attending a course at Kyankwanzi. However, she said that she has scheduled August 22 to inspect the two villages and also hold meetings with the affected persons to find lasting solutions.
Without divulging details into the matter, Mbabazi asked the affected persons to always report their grievances to her office for handling saying that nobody should be evicted from their land without her permission.
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