Mbabazi wants law targeting road reserve encroachers

Mar 05, 2014

UGANDA needs to come up with a stringent law to make building in a road reserve an offence, the Prime Minister, Amama Mbabazi has said


By Joyce Namutebi & Moses Mulondo


UGANDA needs to come up with a stringent law to make building in a road reserve an offence, the Prime Minister, Amama Mbabazi has said.

He was responding to questions raised by MPs during the “Prime Ministers Question Time” in Parliament on Wednesday.

He observed that in Uganda, even when people build in road reserves they are compensated as per interpretation of Article 26 of the Constitution. 

“We need to straighten it by legislation.”

Article 26, which is about protection from deprivation of property, talks about every person’s right to own property and does not entertain compulsory deprivation of property save for a few exceptions.

“We need to make a strict law, like it is in other countries, so that when you build in a road reserve, it is an offence,” Mbabazi.

William Nzonghu (FDC) had asked the premier whether he was aware that the government had lost Sh40b in compensating the purported land owners encroaching on the Mbarara-Kabale road reserve 

“Why have you delayed to take action?” Nzonghu asked but Mbabazi replied that he was not aware of the loss.

He, however, added that “even if we had compensated people it does not tantamount to loss.” 

He admitted though that they have had a problem of people building in road reserves, citing Entebbe road.

On bailing out Sembule Steel mills, Mbabazi, responding to the question by Ken Lukyamuzi (CP) admitted that he had informed Parliament that the government would look at the possibility of rescuing the company.

“The reason was that this government would like encourage growth of internal capacity,” he said explained. He said he had discussed the matter with the President, the Minister of Finance and the proprietors.

He explained that the Government had intervened before. 

“Government had spent US$5m to rescue them. Now, they needed many millions of dollars to rescue them again. It was not possible to rescue them,” he said.

Lukyamuzi, however, informed the PM that the company required only Sh7b to be rescued from turmoil, but the PM promised to cross check the facts.

Mbabazi explained that the case has been difficult because the matter was already in court and that the court had made a decision on it. 

“The way to rescue them was to raise the actual cash which we didn’t have.” He further pointed out that the company had unfortunately gone through many misfortunes.

He informed the House that he talked to the owner, Mr Sembuya about two weeks ago, who was supposed to give him information so that he could talk to finance minister. He said he was yet to get the information.

On the question by Jesca Ababiku (independent) regarding 500 police cadets who were recruited in 2010 but have never been confirmed up to now, Mbabazi said confirmation is a process and assured that this will be done as soon as the process is completed. 

He assured that the cadets are properly enrolled in the Uganda Police Force.

On drought in Isingiro, Mbabazi noted that most of the country has been affected by drought. 

His answer that they have been praying for rain to come did not amuse MP Christine Bako (FDC) who asked whether it was in order for the premier to simplify the matter by referring to prayers.

On payment of veterans, he said it is true that the Ministry of Defence had asked them to register and open bank accounts, and many responded. 

“We had to go through the exercise of verification which took very long.”

He said payment of the veterans had started and appealed to those who had not yet got their money to be patient.

He said those who fought in World War I and II had been catered for by the government responsible for them, but the government had to find ex-gratia for them, which money Parliament has not appropriated.

He assured that construction at the former Nakawa/Naguru estate would begin soon.

The speaker, Rebecca Kadaga did not entertain Beatrice Anywar’s question as to whether Mbabazi was about to be arrested due to internal power struggles. “I don’t think anyone can answer,” Kadaga said.

She advised MPs to use their iPads to watch “prime minister time in the House of Commons’ so as to grasp how to ask the questions

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