UGANDA, Kampala | Real Muloodi News | UPDATE: 03rd October 2021: According to court documents released on Friday, 29th October 2021, the case file challenging the demolition of the fallen Kisenyi building has been assigned to the head of the High Court Civil Division, Justice Musa Ssekaana, who has set November 25 as the date for the case hearing.
Lady Justice Patricia Basaza Waiswa heard the case and granted the plea for a temporary injunction, preventing the Kampala Capital City Authority-KCCA from demolishing the property in question, which belongs to business mogul Haruna Ssentongo.
On September 5, a part of the primary structure crumbled, killing six people and injuring many more.
The National Buildings Review Board directed the KCCA Building Committee to conduct a structural integrity investigation on the remaining part of the structure. After the inspection, the committee proposed that the remaining structure be demolished within three days.
The KCCA Building Committee issued this order on October 18, and it has been pending since then.
Ssentongo, represented by Kimara Advocates and Consultants, filed a case with the High Court Civil Division against the KCCA Building Committee’s decision.
According to reports, Ssentongo suggested that the collapse of a part of the structure was related to recent severe rains, which hampered continuing construction and progress.
Ssentongo allegedly sought 200 million shillings in restitution for general harm incurred by KCCA’s violation of his constitutional rights. He also requested that the court impose a temporary restraining order, preventing KCCA from demolishing the remaining part of his building until the lawsuit is resolved.
Justice Basaza of the Land Division accepted the petition for a temporary restraining order. On Wednesday, the file was transferred from Justice Basaza to the Registrar of the Civil Division, Jamson Karemani.
On Thursday, Karemani issued and signed an order protecting the status quo, stating they should not dismantle the structure.
According to court records, the file was later assigned to Justice Musa Ssekaana on Friday, who set a date for the case’s hearing.
Previous Update: Sunday 12th September 2021: Millionaire Haruna Ssentongo, proprietor of the building which collapsed in Kisenyi in Kampala’s Central Division, has recorded a statement with the police.
Haruna Ssetongo appeared at Kampala’s Central Police Station, along with the site engineers. The collapsed building claimed the lives of six people, and left six others hospitalised.
Luke Owoyesigyire, Kampala Metropolitan Deputy Police spokesperson, said they are treating this as a case of rush and neglect.
Owoyesigyire further indicated the police report will come out very soon, but in cases such as this, you must have an expert report, especially when buildings fall. A report from the building review board is also necessary.
While not speaking directly in relation to Ssentongo’s statement, Owoyesigyire did say he expects the suspects will be arraigned for prosecution in Uganda’s courts of law.
Previous Update: Thursday 9th September 2021: Since Tuesday, detectives from Uganda police and the National Building Review Board (NBRB) have been looking for millionaire entrepreneur Haruna Ssentongo, the owner of the building that collapsed over the weekend killing six people and injuring many others.
Investigators are also looking for the site engineer, architect, and an unspecified number of forepersons who were constructing the building before it collapsed.
Since the incident, Mr Ssentongo’s verified mobile phone number has been unreachable.
Haruna Ssentongo is no where to be seen, according to Kampala Metropolitan Deputy Police spokesperson Luke Owoyesigyire.
He also stated that they had summoned certain suspects to assist them with their investigations. He, however, refused to divulge the identities of the suspects, claiming that doing so would be inappropriate.
“We are jointly working with NBRB to investigate this matter,” he said.
When asked which accusations they will bring against the perpetrators, Mr Owoyesigyire stated that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) would decide.
They could not identify the architect and site engineer since they had no certified blueprints from which authorities could readily verify their identities.
Hudson Mutalya, the NBRB standards officer, stated that the architect and site engineer of the collapsed building are yet to be identified.
He stated that when such an accident occurs, the board goes to the scene and gets information on who was engaged in the structure’s construction and if the materials used were authentic.
According to NBRB investigations, the owner of the collapsed building used counterfeit materials, shoddy workmanship and did not hire experts.
“The fast speed at which the building was being constructed, failure to secure building approvals (building permit) and failure by inspectors to carry out their supervisory role,” the NBRB tweeted yesterday as some of the other causes of the collapse.
However, Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago criticised KCCA on Monday for failing to take action against the Haruna Ssentongo, even when they knew he lacked authorised blueprints.
The KCCA’s physical planning directorate has lately been on the spot following building collapses, and critics highlight the authority’s inability to enforce policies.
According to KCCA spokesperson Daniel Nuwabiine, the authority is trying to ease staffing issues, which are largely attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Previous Update: Wednesday 8th September 2021
Kampala City Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago has asked relevant authorities to arrest real muloodi Haruna Ssentongo and charge him with murder, over a collapsed city building in Kisenyi that claimed lives on Sunday 5th September 2021.
Haruna Ssentongo owns the property in question. On Sunday evening, the four-story structure under construction in Kisenyi zone Muzaana Parish in Rubaga Division collapsed, burying automobiles, motorbikes, and people within.
So far, six individuals have been confirmed dead, with many more injured.
During a site visit to the collapsed building’s premises on Monday, Lukwago apologized on behalf of the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) for some laxities caused by the COVID-19 epidemic.
“Such quick fixes have exposed many Ugandans to danger, and the proprietor Haruna Ssentongo, supervisors and engineers, should be prosecuted for murder. So far, six people have been confirmed dead, and several others are still trapped under the rubble,” Lukwago noted.
He claims that many people have taken advantage of this time to construct substandard structures after the curfew has been lifted.
He also stated that his administration would continue to press for the arrest of city property mogul Haruna Sentongo, and all others implicated in combating lawlessness for those who violate all rules and norms.
“The Building Committee is going to tighten the noose in the approval of plans. All those buildings approved during this COVID-19 period are going to be assessed and a decision taken on the way forward. And lastly, the remaining structure is going to be brought down after engaging with the relevant stakeholders, because it is also a catastrophe in waiting,” he added.
What KCCA had to say Concerning Haruna’s Collapsed Building
According to Kampala City Council Authority (KCCA), Haruna disobeyed orders to cease unlawful building activities owing to impunity. He adamantly continued the unlawful construction activities that contributed to the collapse of his Kisenyi building.
According to KCCA records, the construction operations in question lacked planning and building approvals and were thus unauthorized.
The Kampala City Council Authority Noted in a 6th September Statement:
“Once the structure is illegal, then it can’t be supervised by KCCA building inspectors and such works have to be stopped following the protocols stipulated in the building laws. KCCA had issued a Removal Notice, as per section 72 (1) of the Public Health Act on 30th June 2021 and an Enforcement Notice on 29th July 2021. Further inspection was made and by the end of July 2021, the structure was at the second level. By the time of the collapse, construction had proceeded despite notices served and an additional two levels had been constructed in a space of just one month.”
“The developer ignored KCCA instructions to halt works with the same impunity exhibited at the recent construction site collapse incident in Kitebi, Lubaga Division. These accidents could have been avoided if the developers heeded to KCCA’s directives. Many times these accidents are attributed to employment of unqualified personnel, use of poor work methods, poor materials, inadequate designs, inadequate supervision, short breaks between construction to allow concrete to set, inadequate ground conditions, etc.”
“KCCA is working with Uganda Police and other government agencies including the National Building Review Board (NBRB) to bring to book all those involved in the flagrant violation of the country’s building laws putting at risk the lives of innocent Ugandans who went to the site seeking work. A report on the incident and those prior shall be shared in the due course.”
Original Story: Sunday 5th September 2021
This Sunday afternoon, a four-storeyed building under construction has collapsed, covering vehicles, motorcycles and construction workers inside the building. The collapsed building is in Kisenyi zone Muzaana Parish in Rubaga Division. The collapsed building allegedly belongs to Kampala entrepreneur, Haruna Ssentongo.
According to the Kampala Metropolitan Police Deputy Spokesperson Luke Owoyesigyire: “The number of people trapped under the rubble hasn’t been established yet. We will issue later any more information.”
The Directorate of Fire and Rescue Services and the Red Cross are already at the scene to help with the rescue mission.
This adds to the several collapsed buildings in the Kampala Metropolitan Area this year alone that have killed dozens of people and injured many. Last month, a five-storey building in Kitebi collapsed, killing at least one person; another storeyed building in Nansana Municipality collapsed in July, killing its owner, among others.
According to scientific and academic publishing research, although Kampala Capital City Authority has put different strategies to eliminate structural failure of buildings, the challenge continues to affect other parts of Kampala.
The Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development have also put guidelines for the construction industry to follow. However, despite the policies, many buildings have continued to collapse.
Most buildings in Kampala are under construction or renovation, as the city experiences a property boom.
However, the incidents of the collapsed building have become frequent. They are mainly attributed to some property developers allegedly bribing their way out of inspections or bypassing regulations to cut construction costs. Poor designs and construction, the use of substandard materials, among others, are also believed to cause buildings to collapse. As a result, many Ugandans have lost their lives.
READ MORE LIKE THIS:
Inside the Life of Haruna Ssentongo; Owner of the Recently Collapsed Kisenyi Building
