Govt gives land titles to 5,000 locals in Namutumba

At least 5,000 residents of Namutumba District have received free customary land titles from the government to reduce cases of land grabbing and wrangles.
 The development comes at a time when the locals have been having challenges with the district land board, especially over alleged extortion.
 Mr David Balikudembe, a resident of Bugabula Village in Ivukula Sub-county, at the weekend said processing a land title through the district land board has been expensive and challenging. 

 “People have been paying Shs3m to middlemen and district land board officials to get customary land titles, but we are now optimistic that even a poor person will get a land title,” he said.
 Mr Moses Kabakubya, a resident of Bwite Village in Ivukula, said a title will add value to their land.
 The State Minister for Housing and Urban Development, Ms Persis Namuganza, who is also the Bukono MP, said since last year, the government embarked on giving out land titles to successful, interested individuals to have land tenure security. 

Requirements
“Interested persons are entitled to pay a nonrefundable fee of Shs17,000 to Uganda Revenue Authority and get a Tax Identification Number (TIN). “I, therefore, appeal to committee members of the district land board to assist our people on how to get TIN numbers so that they are not cheated by middlemen,” Ms Namuganza said.

 She added: “When I was a Minister for Lands, I begged people to register for land titles but many thought it was politics. Our district missed out on the first phase of disbursement because people did not register in time and we are now beneficiaries of the second phase.”
 The chairperson of the district land board committee, Mr Samuel Nakendo, denied allegations of extortion, adding that the registration process for acquiring the titles is ongoing. 
He said many people are not complying because they cannot afford Shs17,000 for a TIN number. 
“By now, we expected to have more than 2,000 people, but the number is less than the government projection,” Mr Nakendo said.

The district vice chairperson, Mr Patrick Mutyaba, called for sensitisation of residents about the  value of having a land title because some still think it is a waste of money.
He appealed to residents to register for the titles, saying it is for their benefit.
 The district chairperson, Mr David Mukisa, commended the government for the development and pledged to rally locals.
“As the leadership, we have been having challenges helping people to get land titles, but it is now upon us to sensitise the locals and secure their land,”  he said.