Ex-UPDF soldier speaks out on property fight with family of his late driver

Retired senior army officer Maj Jimmy Katende has denied taking over the house of his former driver Ibrahim Kumali, following his death.

Early March, Kumali’s family accused Maj Katende of evicting them from their house in Busega, Wakiso District, allegations denied by the ex-serviceman through his son Rashid Katende.

Speaking to Monitor on Monday, he said the house in question belongs to his father, who had on humanitarian grounds given it to Kumali to take care of it but his family turned around and refused to vacate when he needed it.

“The late Kumali stayed in that house for long without paying any rent until 2013 when Maj Katende wrote to him withdrawing the caretaking authority from him and asked him to leave,” he said.

According to documents seen by this publication, Maj Katende had started writing to Kumali to leave the house even before the latter’s death in 2017.

But upon Kumali’s demise, his first wife Barbra Wabomba left the house with the second wife Sylvia Namee coming in.

Maj Katende dragged the matter to court in a protracted case lasting over six years with court ordering the widow out of the house about a fortnight ago.

“We won all court cases. Kumali’s family was asked to pay for wasting our time, but because the late was our friend, we decided to offer them transport to vacate the house peacefully,” Maj Katende’s son explained.

He blamed Namee for resisting to vacate, claiming she had stayed in the said house for about 18 years.

The retired soldier’s son further told Monitor that after Kumali’s death, Maj Katende wrote to the Wakiso RCC asking her to convene a meeting so that the widow explains her refusal to vacate.

“In 2018, Namee attended a meeting and it was agreed that we would facilitate the family with Shs1m as transport so that they vacate the house. The money was sent to the family but they were ill-advised and refused to take it, hoping to gain much more,” he said.

“After the family of Kumali failed to vacate the house peacefully, we had to apply for an eviction order and followed every process. We did not break any property because it was a smooth process,” he elaborated.

In a recent interview with this publication, Namee claimed that she had also written to the office of the Wakiso RCC demanding that her eviction be halted.

She alleged that Kumali acquired the contested piece of land from Maj Katende during a time when he was the soldier’s driver.

But Katende’s son branded the claim “a pack of lies on account that the deceased wasn’t his father’s personal driver but just a friend.

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