Reports of land grabbing have been reported mostly in the sub-counties of Kapeeka, Semuto and Kasangombe in Nakaseke districts, Lwabyata, Nakitoma, Nabiswera, Wabinyonyi, Lwampanga and Kakooge in Nakasongola and the areas of Kamira, Makulubita, Zirobwe and Butuntumula in Luwero district.
All presidential
candidates who have held campaigns in Greater Luwero are promising one major
issue; ending land grabbing, a problem that has persisted in the area for ages.
Reports of land grabbing
have been reported mostly in the sub-counties of Kapeeka, Semuto and Kasangombe
in Nakaseke districts, Lwabyata, Nakitoma, Nabiswera, Wabinyonyi, Lwampanga and
Kakooge in Nakasongola and the areas of Kamira, Makulubita, Zirobwe and
Butuntumula in Luwero district.
Hundreds of residents have been evicted from their
homes and others are living in fear, on the edge of eviction, each day, and
each night by those seeking to convert it into commercial farms and industries.
It’s based on this
that presidential candidates are saying that persons whose land was grabbed should
be able to repossess it and utilize it for agricultural production.
This message has so far
been re-echoed by eight out of the 11 presidential candidates who have already
campaigned in Luwero, Nakaseke and Nakasongola, a region which
was up until now known to
be the base of NRM support.
The candidates include
Patrick Oboi Amuriat (FDC) Yoweri Kaguta Museveni (NRM) Norbert Mao (DP) Robert
Kyagulanyi Ssentamu (NUP) and Gregg Mugisha Muntu (ANT).
The others are Independent
candidates Henry Tumukunde, Willy Mayambala, and John Katumba. While campaigning in
Nakaseke, Amuriat and Kyagulanyi pinned top government officials and close relatives
of the incumbent president Yoweri Museveni for turning natives into squatters. But,
Amuriat said, that will soon be in the past.
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He was responding to
concerns by Lydia Nalujja, the FDC Parliamentary candidate for Nakasongola who
stated that many of the area residents had opted for fishing, after losing
their land to grabbers. But, she added, they have now been evicted from the
lakes and are now wandering in towns.
Similarly, Kyagulanyi said
that the only way to end land grabbing is by voting President Museveni out of
office. He said his government would ensure that land is occupied by rightful
owners.
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During the campaign, Ivan
Kyeyune, the NUP candidate for Nakasongola told Kyagulanyi that over 90 per
cent of the people in his area own no land titles and are living in a panic over
possible evictions.
On the other hand, Nobert
Mao told the residents of Nakaseke to trust DP because they will be able to
handle the land question based on Truth and Justice. He observed a need to
respect all people occupying the land irrespective of their economic status.
//Cue in; “Enkumbi yegenda…
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For Muntu, Tumukunde and
Mayambala the major emphasis of their campaign message was on the promotion of
agriculture through increased funding to the sector as well as the
establishment of fruit processing plants in the area.
On the side of the NRM,
President Yoweri Museveni’s Manifesto shows that they intend to concentrate on
addressing land ownership and security, land use, and land fragmentation. NRM also intends to increase
the Land Fund to solve the historical dual ownership of land in Buganda.
The
manifesto indicates that the amount of money allocated through the Land Fund
has been increased from 42 billion to 92.4 billion to enable people to acquire
land titles.
“We will use the
principle of willing buyer willing seller to pay off the landlords and give
titles to the bibanja owners. This will also include addressing the unfairness
experienced by those whose land was reduced by the landlords.”
In Nakaseke, MP Luttamaguzi Semakula says that he has
spent most of his term in Parliament fighting against evictions.
