Bugweri district reaches consensus with land claimants

The legal battle between the newly created Bugweri district and purported owners of the local government land has been resolved.

According to Jonathan Mukose the Bugweri district chief administrative officer, the consent agreement ended a lengthy court battle that had been raging for a decade.

"We reached a settlement with the Kaziba family that had been alleging that the district land belongs to them. Much of the discussions were done before we broke off from Iganga," Mukose told New Vision on Monday.

Bugweri which became a new district on July 1, 2017, now occupies the hitherto contested county headquarters land located in Busesa town.

Joseph Kaziba explained that as part of the 2017 deal, their family obtained nine out of the over 30 acres that they had been demanding as their rightful property.

"This land initially belonged to our great grandfather who lived at this very spot. However, due to his closeness to the colonial administrators, he allowed them to set up the ssaza headquarters on his territory," Kaziba narrated.

He added that family members had started constructing permanent buildings on the land handed back to them; located opposite Busesa Health Centre IV.

Farida Namatende a resident of Busesa town said the recent move to reach a consensus exhibited a spirit of togetherness.

"It is an indicator that we all need to see Bugweri district move to greater levels. Those fights would just keep frustrating development," Namatende argued.

Patrick Kayemba the Iganga district chairman expressed his satisfaction with the consent agreement saying it guarantees smooth operations of the new local government.