Less or slow attention has been given to the intense struggle for a plot of land located on Mbeya island in Mpunge sub-county in Mukono district.
The said Plot 9 on Block 494, Kyaggwe, measuring seven acres, is claimed by both Jackson Twinamasiko, a businessman in Mukono, and Maj Mark Wanyama, a senior UPDF officer.
For over three years now, the disagreement between the two has sparked outrage among island residents who feel that their rights to due process and the rule of law are being undermined.
Besides, the businessman has lately claimed that his life is in danger. Twinamasiko sought legal intervention, resulting in a temporary injunction issued in November, 2019 to halt any activities related to the disputed land.
The injunction, granted by Mukono High court, restrained Wanyama and his associates from engaging in any sale, alienation, transfer, subdivision, or interference with the contested land until the main case’s conclusion.
Despite this injunction, the landlord, Francis Tyaba, who is based in the USA, through Joyce Lutaaya, proceeded to sell the land to Wanyama, who forcefully occupied it by deploying armed military personnel to prevent Twinamasiko from utilizing it.
High court’s final decision on the main case is pending in November of this year.
HOW IT BEGAN
After identifying the land in 2019, Twinamasiko dispatched emissaries who found out that the land in question was part of a larger chunk measuring 23.9 acres (9.7 hectares), of which 16 acres had already been sold to Wanyama, leaving seven acres available for purchase.
To ensure that the land was free from any legal encumbrances and that the powers of attorney claimed by Joyce Lutaaya were legitimate, Twinamasiko conducted a search of the land’s ownership records at the ministry of Lands.
Following his assessment of the land and its ownership, Twinamasiko selected Michael Higenyi to act as his attorney and oversee the transaction.
After reaching an agreement with the landowners, he was required to make a commitment fee payment of Shs 20 million towards the total amount of Shs 70 million, which he did on November 6, 2019, through his dfcu bank account.
The remaining balance of Shs 50 million was due before the end of the month, and Twinamasiko made the payment on November 20, 2019, to the Nono Boutique account, which belongs to Lutaaya in Standard Chartered bank. His attorney was expected to draft a sale agreement with Lutaaya and the other sellers of the land at a later date.
However, upon realizing that Twinamasiko had bought the remaining seven acres of land, records show that Wanyama colluded with Lutaaya to pay back Twinamasiko’s Shs 70 million plus an additional Shs 5 million per acre. On November 24, 2019, Lutaaya refunded the sum of Shs 70 million to Twinamasiko’s dfcu account through her Nono Boutique. However, Twinamasiko refused the refund and took the matter to court.
“I did not lend Lutaaya money that she could later pay back. Rather, I had purchased the land; it is just a mere allegation being made that I am insisting on taking land that does not belong to me,” Twinamasiko reasoned in his plaint.
He requested the court to seize the illegally deposited Shs 70 million from his account to cover any potential legal consequences, and a caveat was placed on the land. Three months after these events, another group of brokers approached Twinamasiko, attempting to sell the same land.
This time, they had a land title in the name of Wanyama, who was accused of being involved in the land grab. Instead, he took swift action and went to the Mukono zonal lands office with relevant documentation, leading to the annulment of the brokers’ forged land title.
During the court hearing, it was discovered that Wanyama had an agreement dated April 6, 2019, indicating that he had purchased 16 acres of land. Still, the same court discovered that the officer had two additional agreements, which were forged, suggesting that Wanyama had also purchased seven acres of land on November 19, 2019, after Twinamasiko had paid a commitment fee of Shs 20 million.
Another agreement showed that Wanyama purchased 25 acres of land on April 6, 2019. This, actually, meant that he (Wanyama) now holds 48 acres in a place that only has 23.9 acres.
INTERIM USE OF LAND
The court granted Twinamasiko an interim use of the land pending the final court decision. Thereafter, Wanyama was accused of hiring a group of men who went to the land and assaulted some of Twinamasiko’s workers on top of destroying various tree species that had been planted on the land.
The attackers also set fire to various properties, including temporary shelters that had been erected on the land for casual workers. Upon realizing that no action was taken by the police after documenting the damage caused by Wanyama and his associates, Twinamasiko reported a case of contempt of court at the Magistrate’s court in Mukono.
On October 29, 2022, Wanyama is said to have discharged another team of people offered to him by Brig Shaban Lukyamuzi, the former head of the Presidential Special Task Force on Land and Environment, which allegedly orchestrated the remaining property erasure and aided Wanyama in creating a militia presence on the contested land.
They further assaulted 10 of Twinamasiko’s workers, including Alex Akampulira, Veleriano Asiimwe and others. An eyewitness, Richard Lubwama, a resident in the area, says the soldiers engaged in activities that could have resulted in loss of lives.
CONTINUED PURSUIT FOR JUSTICE
On November 17, 2022, the Mukono district security committee held a meeting chaired by RDC Fatumah Ndisaba to address the concern. It was agreed that the two parties vacate the land until the matter is settled in court.
With the repeated contempt of both court orders and the district security committee, Twinamasiko petitioned the police, but Mukono district police commander Edrisa Kyeyune has since feared confronting soldiers at Mbeya. Despite Twinamasiko’s repeated pleas to various authorities, his efforts have yielded minimal results.
“On October 31, 2022, I wrote to the UPDF chief of defence forces and the deputy speaker of parliament, Thomas Tayebwa. On November 9, 2022, I petitioned the head of legal, the State House Anti-Corruption Unit (Shacu), the minister of Security, and the inspector general of police on November 25, 2022, among others,” he says.
“The only notable response has come from CDF Gen Wilson Mbadi, who engaged the Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence. However, limited action has been taken, despite the findings’ transmission back to him by CMI.” Among the infractions reported for CMI’s investigation are land invasion by a senior army officer and property damage on October 29, November 5, and November 8, 2022. Twinamasiko also urged an inquiry into Lukyamuzi’s actions.
Shacu spokesperson Mariam Natasha Oduka has also revealed that the unit has embarked on investigating the same matter so as to arrive at a proper and guided conclusion.
INTIMIDATIONS
According to sources familiar with the matter, on July 31, 2023, Ben Mugisha from police’s Crime Investigations Department (CID) land protection desk, accompanied by 12 armed individuals, raided Twinamasiko’s workplace at night between 10pm till midnight. Their apparent intention was to arrest him, but he had left earlier.
They were reportedly travelling in two vehicles: a double cabin bearing licence plate UP 4653 and a saloon car.
“No official summons was issued to me by the CID headquarters. I have received credible information: ” Maj Wanyama has influenced individuals at Kibuli, starting with unit commandant Johnson Dale Olal, to orchestrate my arrest due to my land purchase near his property on Mbeya island,” claims Twinamasiko.
He is now concerned about his personal safety, believing that a group under the command of Wanyama is pursuing him with malicious intentions. He opened up a case about the raid at his workplace, and on August 2, this year, he found himself instead arrested by the CID in Kibuli, where he had gone to follow up on a complaint he lodged against Mugisha.
Despite being granted a police bond, Twinamasiko was rearrested the following day on allegations of causing intentional property damage, boundary removal, and trespassing on the contested land at Mbeya. He was presented in Mukono Magistrate’s court, where he was granted bail.
According to him, the arrest was seemingly orchestrated to portray him as a land grabber for media purposes.
“Upon reaching the Mukono Chief Magistrate’s court, I noticed a multitude of cameras. Interestingly, the court dismissed similar accusations against me in 2021. I wonder if the same file has been revived and why I have never been summoned to write a statement.”
Twinamasiko was granted a cash bail of Shs 300,000, while his sureties, Robert Kizito Mugerwa and Mark Ssentamu Kabunga, were granted a non-cash bail of Shs 10 million.
WANYAMA’S RESPONSE
Maj Wanyama insists that whatever is said to the media by Twinamasiko is baseless. According to him, he purchased the contested plot of land and has documents.
“I am confident court will determine that I am the rightful owner of the land and he is the fraudster; I have all the documentary evidence confirming ownership. It is his people orchestrating attacks against mine, and then after he gives information in reverse format,” he says. Wanyama adds that Twinamasiko moves on to bribe every official to assist him in the fraud mission.
“Twinamasiko takes advantage of the fact that I am a soldier, and since people have the wrong mentality about soldiers, they tend to believe him,” he says.
Story By The Observer
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