The state Minister for Lands, Sam Mayanja, has cancelled out the contentious title for Kayanja land in Masindi district that was allegedly fraudulently leased to an investor.
This was during a meeting between the minister and the leaders from Masindi district convened at Masindi Municipal on Thursday, where the leaders made a passionate appeal to the minister to cancel out the land title for Kayanja land, citing fraud in the process of leasing it to the current holder.
The meeting followed the petition to the Minister by the leaders after learning that the land had been leased to Magalizi Distillers Ltd. for 49 years by the Ministry of Lands.
The leaders say the land measuring 131 acres and located in Kayanja Cell, Nyangahya Division, Masindi Municipality, initially belonged to the former Masindi National Teachers College and later Masindi Primary Teachers’ College but was leased to the investor without the knowledge of the collage or the district leadership.
The land had even been approved by the district council for the establishment of Bunyoro University’s campus in the Greater Masindi.
The Masindi Municipal Mayor, Ronald Kyomuhendo Businge, told the minister that the land in question was bought by the community with the purpose of supporting the education sector.
‘’Hon. Minister, the contested land was bought by the community and given to the National Teachers College, and when it was phased out, it was allocated to Primary Teachers College Kamurasi, Kyomuhendo explained.
Kyomuhendo revealed that they realized last year that the land had been leased to an investor when they were searching for land for the establishment of Bunyoro University’s Greater Masindi Campus.
The politician wondered how the lands ministry could lease the land to an investor without the knowledge of either the municipal or district authorities.
‘’Minister, we are now stuck; we don’t have where to establish the Bunyoro University Campus for Greater Masindi because our land was leased to an investor,’’ he lamented.
Kyomuhendo also told the minister that the investor has failed to develop the land since it was leased, therefore appealing to the lands ministry to cancel the land title and return it to the former holder to create space for the establishment of the university.
‘’Hon. Minister, we also understand that Magalizi Distillers Ltd was deregistered in the country; therefore, the land is not being developed,’’ he added.
The Member of Parliament representing Masindi Municipality, Joab Businge, said that the land was leased to a distilling company, and yet the community had bought it with the purpose of supporting the education sector, thus appealing for the cancellation of the land title for the benefit of the public.
‘’Hon. Minister, we have enough distilling companies in the region; therefore, the land title for Magalizi should be cancelled because the land is not being developed and the purpose of buying it was to support the education sector, not distillation,’’ noted Businge.
Dr. Florence Asiimwe, the Masindi district woman member of parliament, asserted that land is the major factor hindering the establishment of Bunyoro Public University for the greater Masindi since the proposed land was leased to an investor.
She also asked the minister to consider canceling the land title to speed up the process of establishing a public university in the area.
‘’Bunyoro University is always missing on the budget because we have failed to identify land for its establishment, and we have less time, so minister, we request that you speed up the process of canceling the land title so that we can hand it over to the taskforce responsible for the establishment of the university,’’ Asiimwe requested.
In response, Minister Mayanja said that the leased land can be reverted to the community or the Uganda Lands Commission in case the investor fails to develop the land.
He concurred with the leaders that Kayanja land was fraudulently leased to the investor since it was bought by the community and was in the custody of the district land board. He revealed that he had accordingly cancelled out the title and reverted the land to Masindi district.
‘’This land falls under the Masindi district land board; therefore, I have cancelled its title and reverted it back to the local leadership of Masindi,’’ he said.
Minister Mayanja even advised the leaders to write to his office directing the land to be allocated either to the district or Bunyoro University or to attach Bunyoro University as the user, and this should be done as soon as possible.
For some time, leaders in Masindi district have been in arms over the location of Bunyoro University. A section of them suggested Masindi agricultural demonstration farm land situated in Kihonda village, Labongo Sub County, while others preferred Kayanja land.
Additional Source: UG Reports