Widow, Gen Tumwine clash over 400 acre land

Former Security minister, Gen Elly Tumwine. PHOTO/FILE

A 67-year-old woman and the former Security minister, Gen Elly Tumwine, are embroiled in a land wrangle with the former directing that the latter to leave the land with immediate effect.
The row has since attracted the intervention of the sub-county leaders in Kazo District who have asked Gen Tumwine to produce documents authenticating his continued occupation of the 400 acre piece of land.
According to sources, the land belonged to Wilson Gukyere, who leased it to Gen Tumwine.

Gukyere passed away in June.
His family accuse Gen Tumwine of breaching the contract of the lease which stated when he should stop utilising it.
Speaking to Daily Monitor in an interview, Ms Medius Kamaruka, the widow of Gukyere, and a resident of Mirama, Kazo Sub-county, accused Gen Tumwiine of concealing what she called a purported agreement with her late husband.
Ms Kamaruka added that before his death Gukyere had told her that Gen Tumwine’s period for utilising the land had expired.

She said at one time, Gen Tumwine arrested her husband when he tried to rent the land to other people.
 “If it is true that Gen Tumwine, who has occupied this land for 10 years, claims that his period of rent is not over, let him produce the rent agreement. He should stop occupying my land with impunity,” Ms Kamaruka said.
She added: “Gen Tumwine’s continuous concealing of the information in the agreement depicts a sinister motive. If you say it is only the husband that knows the agreement and is now dead, do you want us to consult a ghost for these documents?”

Mr Jackson Muhebwa, the district councillor, said the best way to resolve this impasse is for Gen Tumwine to declare details of the agreement and bring it for all to see.
“We are trying to reach out to Gen Tumwine and I think the issue will be resolved,” Mr Muhebwa said.

TUMWINE REACTS
Efforts to reach  Gen Tumwine for a comment were futile as he never answered our calls nor replied our messages.
However,  appearing on a BBS TV on Sunday night, Gen Tumwine said he hired the land for a period of time he did not disclose and that this period has not elapsed.
“The husband left me with the land knowing I have a long period of time to stay there for the  period I paid for. That is according to the agreement I have and which I signed with her husband,” he said.