Widow, nine children reclaim home after two-year Iganga land dispute
The family was returned home by assistant resident district commissioner Tonny Nabala following a two-year legal battle in which four people were convicted and sentenced by the Iganga Grade One Magistrate’s Court.
Merab Nampogo, the widow of Moses Nampongo, a resident of Buwolomera village, said she was evicted from her home and two acres of land by her sister-in-law, Beatrice Kose. (Photo by Ivan Wakibi)
__________________
Authorities in Iganga district have returned a 60-year-old widow and her nine children to their home in Buwolomera village, Nawaningi sub-county, two years after they were allegedly violently evicted from their land by relatives and local leaders.
The family was returned home by assistant resident district commissioner Tonny Nabala following a two-year legal battle in which four people were convicted and sentenced by the Iganga Grade One Magistrate’s Court.
The family had been living separately in the homes of friends and sympathisers after their eviction, which was accompanied by the alleged sale of part of their land, destruction of property and food crops, and death threats.
The return followed joint intervention by authorities, stakeholders and activists who supported the family in pursuing justice.
Merab Nampogo, the widow of Moses Nampongo, a resident of Buwolomera village, said she was evicted from her home and two acres of land by her sister-in-law, Beatrice Kose, after her husband died in 2020.
Nampogo said she had lived peacefully on the land with her husband since 1980, but Kose, who she said had sold her share of the land in 2006 before she married, later demanded ownership of the property following her husband's death.
She said she first reported the matter to regional police and later to Iganga Police Station, which advised the alleged perpetrator to stop the eviction. However, she said the advice was ignored, prompting her to seek the intervention of clan leaders and LC1 officials before the family was eventually evicted.
Samuel Gabeto, one of the orphans, said the family tried to resist the eviction but was overpowered by relatives and other residents who supported the alleged perpetrators.
He said the family faced numerous threats to their lives, was followed and had faeces thrown at their homes.
While officiating at the handover, RDC Nabala cautioned relatives and local leaders against such actions, saying those involved could face prosecution.
He said widows and orphans have a right to own property and pledged to continue working with stakeholders to help marginalised groups obtain justice.
He said the district would continue monitoring the family, together with other stakeholders, to ensure they lived peacefully at home and were protected from intimidation.
Damalie Nyafono, a legal officer with Redeem International who prosecuted the case, said four people were convicted by Iganga Grade One Magistrate Mariam Atunga of criminal trespass, malicious damage and theft.
The magistrate sentenced them to three months in prison and ordered compensation for the widow and the return of the sold land to the family. The LC1 chairperson, Dakka, was also barred from further involvement in land-grabbing activities involving widows after serving his sentence.
The organisation's community liaison officer, Henry Anthony Wabwire, and programme manager, Steven Wambi, pledged continued collaboration with stakeholders to protect widows and orphans from property grabbing.
The district police community liaison officer, Ruth Nanteza, urged relatives to seek reconciliation in similar disputes rather than allowing them to escalate into criminal cases involving police and courts.
Sub-county councillor Yunus Kirunda, who represented the LC5 chairperson, hailed the authorities and activists for their intervention in helping the family obtain justice.