UGANDA, Mukono| Real Muloodi News | Residents of Mukono District Mpunge Sub-county are opposing the intended allotment of one square mile of land to American-Senegalese artist Aliaune Damala Badara, popularly known as Akon to build his second futuristic metropolis in Uganda.
Last year, Akon travelled to Uganda with his wife, Rozina Negusei, and met with high-level government officials, including President Yoweri Museveni, who addressed the problem of investing in Uganda. The guests were then flown across the nation in the presidential helicopter to find a suitable location for their city.
Akon’s lofty goal is to create a metropolis powered by the Akoin cryptocurrency. He has previously stated that one of his goals is to construct a real-life version of Wakanda, the fictional African nation depicted in Marvel’s “Black Panther.” This is a project similar to one he planned to develop in Senegal, where he promised luxury condos, a coastal resort, office parks, and gravity-defying buildings.
The government offered to provide him with free land for the project. To enable the creation of the new metropolis, the Uganda Land Commission presented a land title for the allocated land to Lands Minister Judith Nabakooba two weeks ago.
According to ULC interim chairperson Prof. Pen Mogi Nyeko, the allotted land is on the freehold registry and is held by the Uganda Land Commission. Prof. Nyeko points out that they began touring the site in November 2020 and concluded that such a lovely location near Lake Victoria would benefit the government.
However, the land handover will affect around 1,000 residents in Bulebi, Sango, Mbazi, and Lulagwe. The residents accuse the Uganda Land Commission of failing to engage them before handing over the land ownership to someone else.
Margret Nabbanja, a resident of Bulebi village, says that while she has not received any formal notice to quit the land, she has known about the intentions through local officials. She is concerned that the allocation would affect her well-being and ancestry because the same region is home to her ancestral grounds.
Another citizen, Salim Kabanda, claims that the government has no jurisdiction to distribute land that individuals owned long before the NRM gained power. He is perplexed why the Uganda Land Commission gave land to the investor to use without first discussing with senior locals and local leaders regarding ownership and tenancy.
According to Lands Minister Judith Nabakooba, the land title received is registered with the Uganda Land Commission. The ministry is now responsible for locating additional parties that are stakeholders in the land.
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