UGANDA, Mityana | Real Muloodi News | Judith Nabakooba, the Minister of Lands, issued a warning to landlords who plan to take advantage of the Land Fund scheme by selling public land with vacant tenancies.
On October 15, Nabakooba gave the warning while settling land disputes during her visit to Kalungu-Bala in Banda Town Council and Butayunja Town Council in Mityana District that was prompted by complaints from the area locals.
According to Ms Nabakooba, the government is providing land titles to various tenants as part of the Land Fund to guarantee their security of tenancy.
“Government buys land for people to live free, those selling land to the government should be genuine with clear documentation. No landlord should use this arrangement (Land Fund) to dupe government,” Ms Nabakooba said.
The fund is a multipurpose resource envelope designed to assist specific beneficiaries, such as renters looking to purchase or own property, governments looking to purchase land for the purpose of redistributing it to lawful inhabitants, or landless individuals being resettled, among others.
One of the local leaders informed the minister about how a landowner who intended to sell government land tricked him into signing a land agreement.
“The landlord wrote to the mayor expressing interest to sell his land to the government, I declined to sign on it (letter) because the people were not involved in the process,” the leader said.
The land in dispute is Block 129, plots 14, 15, and 43 at Busujju in Banda Town Council. It has three mailo land titles and is made up of around 348 acres.
Landlords who want to sell their land were advised by Ms Nabakooba to do it transparently with participation from all parties.
She also launched an investigation into the situation after claiming that there are no inhabitants on a portion of the land the landlord wants to sell to the government.
Ms Nabakooba also requested the investigative committee to provide a final report within two weeks of the directive.
Due to inconsistencies in paperwork and claimants’ testimonies, the minister in Butayunja Town Council expressed dissatisfaction with the land ownership.
She said the hired surveyor was not registered and, therefore, has no authority to carry on business or participate in the land titling procedure.
“All activities on this land should be stopped with immediate effect as we crosscheck the records in the titling process in a period of two months. The status quo should be maintained and a commissioner’s caveat should be placed on this land immediately,” Ms Nabakooba said.
“I am not satisfied with what is on ground. Let us scrutinise them again. We have realised that unregistered surveyors were contracted to do the work. Also, the landlord talks of one square mile yet my records show 489 hectares,” she added.
About the Land Fund
The Land Fund is a multipurpose resource envelope designed to assist specific beneficiaries, such as renters looking to purchase or own property, the government looking to purchase land to redistribute it to lawful inhabitants, or landless individuals being resettled, among others.
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