New details emerge on Ndeeba church

Fresh details about the demolished St Peter's Church of Uganda, Ndeeba, indicate that Police officers who were guarding it were reportedly withdrawn from the property hours before the demolition, Saturday Vision has learnt.

According to security sources investigating the matter, the officers, on interrogation, claimed to have received a telephone call from their bosses ordering them to vacate the area.

The demolition of the church has since seen 15 suspects, including three Police officers and the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) acting director physical planning, arrested.

The Police officers are the Katwe Police boss, David Epedu, Kampala Metropolitan South regional Field Force Unit (FFU) commander, Kaloli Isabirye, and the head of Ndeeba Police Station, Mugira Yeko Kato. They face charges of neglect of duty.

Two trucks used in the razing down of the church were also impounded by the Police. The arrests were ordered by President Yoweri Museveni through the Inspector General of Police, Martins Okoth Ochola, and the State House Anti-Corruption Unit head, Lt Col Edith Nakalema.

Who gave the orders?

Authorities from Katwe Police division, who spoke on condition of anonymity, revealed that the church had for some time been embroiled in land wrangles.

"It had been directly guarded by the Police's FFU commander for Kampala Metropolitan South region (Isabirye). The aim was to halt the demolition," the source said.

Sources said Isabirye ordered his officers (FFU) to withdraw on the eve of demolition, allegedly on "orders from above".

According to the Police, it was found out that the excavator with no number plate, which was used to demolish the church, was carried on a trailer registration number UBG 134G/ UBG 682Q (carrier). All have since been seized by the Police.

President visits scene

President Yoweri Museveni and the Katikkiro of Buganda, Peter Mayiga, visited the scene.

"Even if the church is in the wrong, no one has the right to destroy it. It is a sin or a curse to destroy a church. We are going to deal with those who destroyed the church. I am going to build a new church in this place," the President said, sending residents who had gathered at the site into a frenzy.

The Police said Dodoviko Mwanje aka Dodo, who is alleged to have hired rogues to demolish the church, wanted to record a statement. "We need him to explain what transpired," said the source. However, Mwanje does not appear on any of the court documents concerning the said property.

What lawyers say

In a statement signed by Nangwala, Rezida and Company Advocates, the children of the late Evelyn Nachwa, the first registered proprietor of the land, recovered their mother's land through court from some people who had deposited the title with Barclays Bank.

According to the lawyers, Nachwa was registered as the proprietor of the land on July 7, 1941. She bequeathed the land to John Kajoba, one of her children, on February 8, 1980. Other children are Dan Ssemwanga, Edward Balunga and Steven Nakibinge.

The lawyers said the alleged transfer of the land into the names of Stanley Kigere and Dan Mbowa was a forgery.

The lawyers added that on January 15, 1987, the former Namirembe Bishop, Dunstan Nsubuga, reportedly applied for a special title for the land.

The application was accompanied by a statutory declaration purportedly made on January 15, 1987, by Bishop Nsubuga. However, the lawyers said the declaration was subjected to the opinion of a handwriting expert, who pronounced it a forgery.

The lawyers said the church has never appealed the court ruling granting Nachwa's children letters of administration of their mother's land, adding that the children have since transferred the land to a third party.

"All legal means will be employed to defend the current ownership and to resist unorthodox means of trying to reverse the legal order. We do not believe that appealing to public sentiments is the solution to any aggrieved party," the lawyers stated.

Unanswered questions

 Expiry of order:

The demolition order for the church was issued on August 2, 2019, yet legal experts say eviction orders are valid for only one year. Another order should have been obtained in order to execute the transaction.

Demolition order

There must have been a warrant of demolition signed authorising the bailiffs to go ahead and demolish. The question is, who could have signed the warrant of demolition during court vacation?

Adverse possessor

The church occupied the premises for the last 40 years and legal experts say having been on the land for decades, the church was an adverse possessor (having occupied the land for a period of time) and should have been given the first priority to own the land. Was the church given a chance to acquire the land?

Judiciary guidelines

The demolition was conducted at a time when courts are in recess, contrary to the guidelines issued by the Judiciary, lands ministry and the Police.

Clergy defiant

On Wednesday, 37 bishops, led by the Archbishop of the Church of Uganda, Dr Stephen Kaziimba Mugalu, visited the site.

The provincial dean of the Church of Uganda, the Rt Rev. Jackson Nzerebende, who spoke on behalf of the bishops, blamed the Judiciary for what he called endorsing a judgment that destroys the Church of God.

The bishops said destroying a church building would not shake their faith.

"We pray that a barbaric decision like this one should never happen again. This is a black spot to the history of Uganda and we pray that it will never be repeated," Nzerebende said.

Recovered property

On Wednesday, a team of the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID) officers, led by the director, Grace Akullo, opened stores belonging to Dodo located near Railways zone in Ndeeba and recovered items that were allegedly removed from the church before it was razed down.

The items included Bibles, pianos, drums, loud speakers, wall clocks and uniforms. They were handed over to the Rev. Augustine Kayemba, the area vicar.

Who is businessman dodo?

Haji Abdul Karim Kironde, aresident of Bakuli in Rubaga division, Kampala, said Dodoviko Mwanje aka Dodo, the man who is alleged to be behind the demolition of the church, was a few years ago an ordinary mechanic in Ndeeba and that they were friends.

"He first named his garage Dodo Engineering Works. His garage was near St Peter's Church, which was demolished. He made a lot of money through importing spare parts and he would bring them in through Entebbe airport," Kironde said.

He added that Dodo got money after he secured a deal to repair army trucks. Kironde claims he was the one who linked Dodo to the army leadership and that the two fell out after Dodo refused to pay him a commission of sh1.4b over the deal.

Kironde, popularly known as ‘Express FC Mukwano Gwabangi' due to his love for Express Football Club, said Mwanje's real name is Dodoviko Owinyi, and that he was born in Kiboga district, but his ancestral home is in Pakwach in West Nile.

"Dodo got the name Mwanje when he was going to be introduced to his wife's family in Bweyogerere in Wakiso district in the early 2000s," he said.

Kironde, 64, while speaking to Bukedde, a sister paper to Saturday Vision, alleged that in 2001, he took Dodo to Maj. Gen. James Kazini (RIP), then the army commander and introduced him as a good mechanic.

Kironde said after Kazini was appointed army commander, a friend called Sam Kanyarusoke contacted him to connect Dodo to the army commander for a deal to repair army vehicles.

"Kanyarusoke told me that he had an uncle called Dodo who owned a garage in Ndeeba near the road from Lubiri. Kanyarusoke asked me to help his uncle secure the deal," Kironde said.

"When I calculated, I asked Dodo to pay me sh1.4b as my commission, but he only paid me $1200 (about sh4.5m). Later, he paid me sh500,000, and another sh1m. That was very little money compared to the deal I got for him," he narrated.