Residents query refinery plans

They claim evaluation was done haphazardly and that talk of relocating them to Karamoja is unsettling.

More than 300 residents of Kyapoloni Village in Hoima District have petitioned their Woman MP over plans to set up an oil refinery there.

The group, whose land has been earmarked for the oil facility, at the weekend wrote to Ms Tophace Kaahwa Byagira, saying the recently concluded evaluation and resettlement plan was conducted in a non-transparent manner.

In a petition copied to the district chairperson, the residents reported that they find themselves in a dilemma and remain in the dark over when or how they will be compensated or resettled.

“We can no longer do anything productive on the land because they first promised to compensate us in October last year and are now promising to compensate us in March though there are no signs of when we are receiving our money,” said the residents.

The residents reported that they had received “threats” of being resettled in the semi-arid Karamoja sub-region by officials from a company hired to conduct the evaluation exercise.

This newspaper, has, however, not verified the allegations.
Mr Bashiri Hangi, the Energy ministry’s oil refinery project spokesperson, said the government was aware of the plight.

“We have never stopped people from planting crops. They just lost guts thinking they would be evicted,” he said.

fmugerwa@ug.nationmedia.com