3312 Kibaale settlers seeking to recover over sh30b

By Hillary Nsambu

The hearing of a law suit in which 3312 Kibaale settlers are seeking to recover over sh30b as compensation against the Government for the destruction of their properties is set for July.

The plaintiffs, who are led by Tusingwire Barahandiika as their representative, sued the Government and Kibaale District Administration, alleging that the district officials and the central government officials as well as the Mubende-Bunyoro Committee members destroyed their properties leaving them destitute after the LCV elections in Kibaale District.

Presiding Justice Eldad Mwangusya of the High Court, however, said that the hearing could not start yesterday as had earlier been arranged, because he discovered that there were a number of issues including having enough space to accommodate the overwhelming number of the plaintiffs who showed eagerness to listen to the proceedings of their case and also to identify the genuine claimants.

Senior Principal State Attorney Christine Kaahwa told the court that they would also need to ask the Ministry of Agriculture crop experts to make assessments of the property alleged to have been destroyed during the fracas.  

Henry Rwaganika, the lawyer representing the plaintiffs, had earlier submitted that the Government was responsible for failure in its cardinal duty to protect the claimants’ lives and their properties.

He also contended that the Government officials professionally failed to exercise due diligence to stop such occurrence.

“Not only did the Government and the local government officials fail in their statutory duties, they became perpetrator of the destruction of peoples’ properties, displacement of them and in some other incidents occasioned destruction of the victims’ lives,” the lawyers contended.

The lawyer further submitted that because of the destruction, the young, old, women and small children became victims alongside their properties as they were left homeless and; had been left with no alternative but to flee and live in forests without shelter and; the source of their livelihood having been destroyed and were left destitutes.

The children stopped going to school and most of them never went to school since 2001 when such eyesore occurred.