Simon Avuku, the chief of Metuli chiefdom, said the public within the sub-county was denied access to the profile of the company, such as the license and proof of registration, causing suspicion about the authenticity of the company.
Residents of Metu sub-county in Moyo district have accused
Linsek Holding Company Limited, a company licensed to conduct gold exploration
in Metu sub-county, of allegedly selling their land.
The one-acre piece of land was priced at 10 million shillings, but the buyer reportedly paid only 2 million shillings. The matter was discussed during a community engagement organized by the State Minister of Energy and
Mineral Development, Phiona Nyamutoro, on Wednesday.
The meeting was aimed
at fostering unity among the community of Metu and Linsek Holding Company
Limited following a protest against the company late last year.
Francis Madrara, the
chairperson of the Minerals Development Committee, while presenting the
community memo to the minister, revealed that Robert Kamoga, a worker at Linsek
Holding Company Limited, sold community land in Arapi to Kalisa Mustafa of
Gorilla Company Limited.
In the memo, the
community also accused Kamoga of arrogance and using the names of UPDF soldiers to
intimidate and deny the community's feedback on their mineral exploration activities.
//Cue in: “Intimidation
and arrogance… “
Cue out: …district
local revenue.”//
Simon Avuku, the chief
of Metuli chiefdom, said the public within the sub-county was denied access to
the profile of the company, such as the license and proof of registration, causing suspicion about the authenticity of the company.
//Cue in: ”Are they
registered…
Cue out: …knowing their
profile.”//
Williams Anyama, the
chairperson of Moyo district, urged Linsek Holding Company Limited to learn to
swallow their pride, accept where they have gone wrong, and be remorseful
instead of building a defense for their mistakes.
//Cue in: I want to…
Cue out: …make things
better.”//
Tito Okello Kiggundu,
the director of Linsek Holding Company Limited, apologized to the public for all
the wrongs and pledged to transform and work in harmony with the community.
//Cue in: ”We apologize
for…
Cue out: …of our
country.”//
Nyamutoro said the exploration
license does not act as a gateway for the company to own public land and
wonders how the land transaction took
place.
Nyamutoro guided on the
procedures to be followed while acquiring a mining license.
//Cue in: ”Exploration
does not…
Cue out: …or by
lease.”//
Nyamutoro appealed to investors to always liaise with the
local leaders in communities and properly introduce themselves to avoid
speculation and hostility from the community.
“We are going to
support the organization of the artisanal miners in Padiga and Arapi villages
to form their association and get an artisanal mining License that shall enable
them to operate legally as well as see that Linsek Holdings Ltd continues with
exploration in the area,” Nyamutoro wrote.
In 2024, the community
of Metu sub-county rose against Linsek Company Limited for carrying out
illegal mining activities, illegal sale
of community-owned land, and
non-payment of workers, among others.
The community matched the
workers to the office of the RDC, halting the operations of the company until
the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development clarified the operations of the
company.
Dominic Okumu
Freelancer
Caroline Ayugi