The High Court has stopped Victorious Car Bond from cutting trees in the Kifu Central Forest Reserve. The ruling follows a lawsuit filed by the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO). NARO claims ownership of 114.9 hectares of forested land in Mukono District.
Judge Stephen Mubiru issued an interim injunction last Wednesday. The order bars Victorious Car Bond and anyone acting for it—from employees to agents—from developing, selling, or disturbing the disputed land. It also protects NARO’s research trials and the natural forest. The court will keep this restriction in place until it rules on the main case.
The land lies within Kifu Central Forest Reserve. Specifically, it covers FRV 1585 Folio 23, Block 535 Plot 219 at Malaje and Kasayi, Kaggwe, Mukono. The National Forestry Authority (NFA) had licensed part of this area to NaFORRI, NARO’s research arm. NaFORRI uses it to study native trees and safeguard the Lake Victoria catchment.
The conflict started in 2017. That year, Victorious Car Bond claimed ownership of 114.9 hectares of the 1,419-hectare reserve. The company says it received freehold titles from the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development. It argues the forest was already degraded due to nearby urban growth.
However, the government had earlier rejected plans to deforest this reserve. As tensions grew, NFA and NARO called in police and army units. They wanted to shield the forest and research center from encroachment. Security forces successfully blocked initial logging attempts.
Later, Victorious Car Bond owners petitioned the Minister of Internal Affairs. They accused police of misusing their power to block lawful development.
On October 17, 2025, Minister Maj Gen Kahinda Otafiire wrote to the Inspector General of Police. He ordered police to withdraw from the site. Instead, they should protect the investors’ operations. “Land disputes belong in court,” he wrote. “Police do not decide ownership. They only enforce court or ministry decisions.”
Police complied and pulled out. Last month, Victorious Car Bond workers began clearing trees in the contested area. They say they legally acquired the land from the Ministry of Lands.
But the Ministry of Water and Environment disagrees. It states that no one can own part of a gazetted forest reserve unless the government degazettes it first. Last month, the ministry wrote to the Inspector General of Police again. It urged immediate deployment of officers to stop the destruction.
Now, the court’s injunction supports that position. According to The Monitor, the Environment Protection Police Unit will deploy troops today—Tuesday—to enforce Judge Mubiru’s order.
This case reveals a deep tension in Uganda. It pits land titling practices against forest conservation and scientific research. Investors cite valid-looking titles from the Ministry of Lands. But environmental and research agencies insist gazetted reserves remain public assets—protected until officially reclassified.
For now, the Kifu Central Forest Reserve has legal protection. Chainsaws must stay silent until the court delivers its final verdict. The bigger challenge remains: how Uganda can balance investment, land rights, and the urgent need to protect its natural and research ecosystems.
READ: Sh1.6 Billion Case Against National Forestry Authority Dismissed by High Court
