PS advises govt to repossess Sango-Bay
Nov 27, 2008
The Government should repossess and re-allocate part of the Sango-Bay Estate land to investors, since most of it is redundant, a senior government official has said.
By Darious Magara
The Government should repossess and re-allocate part of the Sango-Bay Estate land to investors, since most of it is redundant, a senior government official has said.
The permanent secretary in the Ministry of Lands, Gabindadde Musoke, told the Ssesamirembe probe commission on Wednesday that: “The estate has vast land, has breached terms of the lease offer and has now undertaken maizegrowing and other crops instead of sugar cane.â€
An Asian, only identified as Patel, said the 200 square miles of land belonged to him.
The land in dispute also covers the Rukoma airstrip, which was abandoned.
Kagera Eco-cities, owned by Bambi Baaba and Gertrude Njuba, plans to turn the land, adjacent to Lake Victoria, into an autonomous free trade zone.
The permanent secretary also said the Government, which signed a memorandum of understanding with the Kagera Eco-cities Ltd, did not have proof of re-possession from the Asian.
Musoke said the estate had two land titles; one of 146,000 acres and another, of 12,110 acres, where sugar cane, pines, maize and artemisia were grown.
The commission, which was appointed by the President to investigate the activities of the Serulanda Foundation, a religious sect, and the proposed free trade zone project in Rakai district, is chaired by Prof. Nelson Sewankambo.
Last month, the probe ordered the minister of state for lands, Kasirivu Atwooki, to find the missing documents of the Sango- Bay Estates.
The documents are supposed to be in custody at the Ministry of Finance but were missing.
Emmanuel Mutahunga, a senior commercial officer of the trade and tourism ministry, told the probe that the idea of a free trade zone could not work, since there was no law to govern the operations.
The Government should repossess and re-allocate part of the Sango-Bay Estate land to investors, since most of it is redundant, a senior government official has said.
The permanent secretary in the Ministry of Lands, Gabindadde Musoke, told the Ssesamirembe probe commission on Wednesday that: “The estate has vast land, has breached terms of the lease offer and has now undertaken maizegrowing and other crops instead of sugar cane.â€
An Asian, only identified as Patel, said the 200 square miles of land belonged to him.
The land in dispute also covers the Rukoma airstrip, which was abandoned.
Kagera Eco-cities, owned by Bambi Baaba and Gertrude Njuba, plans to turn the land, adjacent to Lake Victoria, into an autonomous free trade zone.
The permanent secretary also said the Government, which signed a memorandum of understanding with the Kagera Eco-cities Ltd, did not have proof of re-possession from the Asian.
Musoke said the estate had two land titles; one of 146,000 acres and another, of 12,110 acres, where sugar cane, pines, maize and artemisia were grown.
The commission, which was appointed by the President to investigate the activities of the Serulanda Foundation, a religious sect, and the proposed free trade zone project in Rakai district, is chaired by Prof. Nelson Sewankambo.
Last month, the probe ordered the minister of state for lands, Kasirivu Atwooki, to find the missing documents of the Sango- Bay Estates.
The documents are supposed to be in custody at the Ministry of Finance but were missing.
Emmanuel Mutahunga, a senior commercial officer of the trade and tourism ministry, told the probe that the idea of a free trade zone could not work, since there was no law to govern the operations.