By Gerald Tenywa

WORK at the contested part of Kampala’s green belt at Bugolobi has stopped, pending an investigation directed by President Yoweri Museveni.

Yesterday, just two private guards watched over the building materials at the site.

Sources said the workers, who were in the last two weeks building both day and night, left on Tuesday after removing the iron sheet fence at the site.

Museveni’s intervention follows a long-running controversy that pitted Nterenfune General Enterprises, a private company, against KCC over the land.

However, KCC sources and activists, including Stephen Oketcho of Kiswa Youth Group, want Museveni to order the implementation of the report on the irregular allocation of land in the city.

“There was an independent commission that investigated the irregular allocation of land within the city that has been shelved,’’ said Oketcho.

The probe, instituted by the local government ministry, said the land was allocated irregularly and recommended the restoration of the green-belt. But a directive issued by Joseph Bugimbi, the State House officer for the underprivileged, waved Nterenfune on about two weeks ago.

However, Museveni’s directive said the people allocated the land bordered by Spring road, Luthuli Avenue and Kalintusi road were interfering with wetlands and public utilities.

Oketcho’s group had planted more than 1,000 trees on the land to maintain the green belt there.
He said the land houses utilities and is also a flood plain for water that slowly flows into the nearby Nakivubo swamp.

He said Nterenfune’s building stands on sewage pipes running from the former Coffee Marketing Board, the National Forestry Authority and neighbouring hostels.

The National Water and Sewerage Corporation is investigating whether Nterenfune’s developments will affect the water and sewer pipes.

Water’s David Mpango Kakuba said they would release their report later this week. Oketcho said the area also houses part of the Nakivubo Channel, built with funding from the World Bank and that they petitioned the global financial body last week.

Nterenfune is accused of destroying the green spaces and areas housing public utilities in other parts of the city. It is believed that a senior politician is a godfather of the company.