UGANDA, Wakiso | Real Muloodi News | In Bujimba Village, Namayumba Sub-county, Wakiso District, a land dispute involving a local dealer is causing significant tension.
Jamira Namusera, a 70-year-old resident, claims the dealer has forcefully demarcated and sold parts of her land.
Namusera and her husband, Pascal, have lived on their five-acre plot, part of a 1,044-acre estate owned by the late Gabdyeri Lubajja, for many years.
Namusera alleged, “She has demarcated all our eucalyptus trees, coffee plants, and even our maize. We are nearly landless because she almost took the latrine, yet we never sold to her or had any engagement with her.”
Thousands of residents in Bujimba, Ngondwe, Busamba-Kinyika, Gayaza, and Kanziro are facing similar threats of eviction.
Despite a court order halting transactions on the disputed land, the dealer allegedly began razing people’s gardens in Ngondwe in December, dividing the land into plots, and selling them.
John Wanito, another affected resident, reported that the dealer grabbed one acre of his land and fenced it off.
“My maize, coffee, mangoes, oranges, and other food plantations are locked inside. When I tried to cultivate my garden, her boys beat me up, calling me a trespasser,” he said.
Fortunate Akampulira, also from Ngondwe, described her ordeal: “She has caused all forms of mayhem. She forcefully took my land, cut down my mango, jackfruit trees, and coffee plantations. I am suffering.”
A visit to the area revealed various demarcations and plots being created on residents’ land in Bujimba and Ngondwe.
Markers indicated new roads to facilitate access for potential buyers. Residents claimed the dealer had sold the two acres she legitimately purchased in Ngondwe to a property agency, misleading them about her ownership of a larger portion.
By evening of Saturday 6th July 2024, a bulldozer reportedly deployed by the dealer was still razing people’s gardens.
The dealer defended her actions in a December 4, 2023, statement, asserting, “I am the owner of this land. I am negotiating with the Bibanja holders for a win-win solution, sharing 50 percent equally and processing titles for them.”
She dismissed the residents’ complaints as the work of “masqueraders” and shared photos of some agreements she had reportedly reached with them.
Her involvement with the land began when she was hired as a surveyor by some of Lubajja’s grandchildren, led by administrators Richard Semitala and Eastrious Ssegantebuka.
Her surveying services were reportedly compensated with 150 acres of land, and she later acquired an additional 50 acres, raising her stake to 200 acres.
Other grandchildren, led by Josephine Mpamulungi and Teddy Namusoke, have sued Semitala and Ssegantebuka, alleging fraud in obtaining letters of administration and bringing in the dealer.
Mpamulungi and Namusoke also filed a civil suit against the dealer and 27 residents with whom she had allegedly shared land and issued special titles. The High Court’s Family Division is expected to start the case soon.
Mpamulungi said, “She is razing people’s gardens while the case is in court. Nothing is being done.”
In June last year, the court issued a temporary injunction blocking all activities on the disputed land. This followed a directive by Lands Minister Judith Nabakooba at a security meeting on May 21, halting any transactions.
The State House Anti-Corruption Unit investigated the matter, and its report, described by residents as biased, cleared the dealer.
Residents have appealed for intervention from President Museveni, fearing for their safety.
The land dispute traces back to the late Lubajja, who had 11 children, nine of whom are dead. The surviving children, Hasfa Nankabira and Efransie Namayanja are central figures in the conflict.
Two letters from Kayira Gajule, head of the Mbogo Clan, recognised the children and detailed how the property would be shared.
Boundary demarcation began in December 2022, and issues arose when Ssemitala and Ssegantebuka hired the dealer to draw the boundaries, compensating her with 150 acres of land.
In November last year, Semitala defended the decision to bring the dealer onto the land, stating it was a family agreement. He added that compensating her with 150 acres for her surveying services was also agreed upon.
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