Anite orders arrest of Namanve land grabbers

The State Minister for Investment and Privatization, Ms Evelyn Anite has ordered the police to arrest all those that have been illegally selling Namanve Industrial Park land to investors.

"This land is free for investors, I wonder why the Ministry of Lands/ Mukono land board was issuing titles for it, and it has cancelled the same titles it issued," she wondered Tuesday while touring the area.

She emphasized that the Mukono land board officials that issued fake land titles and two other dealers be prosecuted and refund the money.

"These have been selling 30, 20, 15 and 10 acres of industrial land to investors who have been paying billions of Shillings and therefore they must refund the investors’ money," Anite said.

Anite said 300 acres of land have been illegally sold to investors and 30 investors have been affected but promised them that this will be handled carefully.

“Those in the wetland, these impersonators will refund your money and for those who had bought outside the wetland, will get a freehold (lease) and also their money must be refunded too," she noted.

Ms Anite also opened up criminal cases at Mukono police against Joseph Baroraho and Lamech Kiiza whom she alleges gave out fake titles to investors.

However, Baroraho said he acquired the land legally from the Ministry of Lands noting that it’s the custodian of land in this country.

"I went and got a search report and paid people who were registered in the title, transferred into my name and also started selling to investors," he said.

Mr Kiiza said on the other hand that he got the titles before the land was degazzatted.

"Mukono land board issued the titles to me legally and I am wondering why it has cancelled them," he said.

Namanve Industrial Park was degazzatted and given out freely to the investors and the government promised to improve the roads, electricity and others to boost industrialisation in the area as well as in the country.