Hoima NSSF land lease to be cancelled
Dec 30, 2008
THE committee investigating the controversial sale of a 1.8 acre piece of land to the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) at sh32m has directed the lease to be cancelled.
By Pascal Kwesiga
THE committee investigating the controversial sale of a 1.8 acre piece of land to the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) at sh32m has directed the lease to be cancelled.
The committee said the sale of the land, located near Hoima training centre on the Kampala-Hoima highway, had several irregularities.
The seven-member committee was appointed, following complaints from some district councillors, who accused the executive committee and the district land board of illegally selling the land.
Presenting its findings in a council session last week, the committee chairperson, Aisha Kabaramagi, said the process was manipulated when Hoima town mayor Francis Atugonza failed to consult with the town technical officers.
The committee also accused Atugonza of acting as an agent of Trust Property Investment, the company used by NSSF to acquire the land.
It also accused the district land board chairman, Yesero Mugenyi, of disregarding advice from the board members, who told him to stop the deal.
The members argued that the land in question was district property.
“Mugenyi said the district authorities gave him a go-ahead to allocate the land to NSSF. He, however, did not have a written document to support his claim,†Kabaramagi said.
He said the district chairman, George Tinkamanyire, denied having authorised the sale.
The report said the district chief administrative officer, Walter Iriama, received a call from the district chairman, inquiring why the land office was delaying to process the lease.
Iriama testified that he was told the land belonged to the district local government, which was why the land office was reluctant to process the lease.
Tempers flared when Kabaramagi, who was reading the report, accused Tinkamanyire of having kept the land ownership information to himself.
“Tell me which secret I kept when I talked about it with the chief administrative officer?†Bagonza asked.
When Kabaramagi asked Tinkamanyire to apologise, Tinkamanyire said: “I have no apology for you. Subjecting me to an apology is a punishment, which will be over my dead body.â€
The Kyangwali sub-county councillor, who is also the district NRM spokesman, Tom Bigabwenkya Muhe, said the culprits needed to be punished heavily rather than merely asking them to apologise.
“Apologising is not enough,†he said.
THE committee investigating the controversial sale of a 1.8 acre piece of land to the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) at sh32m has directed the lease to be cancelled.
The committee said the sale of the land, located near Hoima training centre on the Kampala-Hoima highway, had several irregularities.
The seven-member committee was appointed, following complaints from some district councillors, who accused the executive committee and the district land board of illegally selling the land.
Presenting its findings in a council session last week, the committee chairperson, Aisha Kabaramagi, said the process was manipulated when Hoima town mayor Francis Atugonza failed to consult with the town technical officers.
The committee also accused Atugonza of acting as an agent of Trust Property Investment, the company used by NSSF to acquire the land.
It also accused the district land board chairman, Yesero Mugenyi, of disregarding advice from the board members, who told him to stop the deal.
The members argued that the land in question was district property.
“Mugenyi said the district authorities gave him a go-ahead to allocate the land to NSSF. He, however, did not have a written document to support his claim,†Kabaramagi said.
He said the district chairman, George Tinkamanyire, denied having authorised the sale.
The report said the district chief administrative officer, Walter Iriama, received a call from the district chairman, inquiring why the land office was delaying to process the lease.
Iriama testified that he was told the land belonged to the district local government, which was why the land office was reluctant to process the lease.
Tempers flared when Kabaramagi, who was reading the report, accused Tinkamanyire of having kept the land ownership information to himself.
“Tell me which secret I kept when I talked about it with the chief administrative officer?†Bagonza asked.
When Kabaramagi asked Tinkamanyire to apologise, Tinkamanyire said: “I have no apology for you. Subjecting me to an apology is a punishment, which will be over my dead body.â€
The Kyangwali sub-county councillor, who is also the district NRM spokesman, Tom Bigabwenkya Muhe, said the culprits needed to be punished heavily rather than merely asking them to apologise.
“Apologising is not enough,†he said.