Don’t discriminate when applying law, why not cancel Mirembe Villas and Serena Kigo land titles as well
Businessman and Ugandan tycoon Hamis Kiggundu most known as Ham has through his lawyers; Muwema & Co advocates contested a report by the Commissioner Land registration in the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development to Cancel some of his Kigo land tittles on the contested land with Buganda Land Board;
We act for M/s Kiham Enterprises Ltd, the registered proprietor of the above land.
Our attention is drawn to the decision your office issued yesterday in respect of the above matter where you directed the amendment of the above register which affects our clients Freehold land titles.
Our client is aggrieved by the above decision and it has instructed us to challenge it on grounds of evident procedural impropriety and irregularities.
We observe that your decision hijacked the public hearing process which you had set up to investigate and handle the dispute/compliant of alleged overlap of our client’s Freehold land titles on mailo land.
We also observe that your decision is based on a minority report which contradicts the findings of the Joint Survey report made by the technical team commissioned by the tribunal. A copy of the survey report is attached hereto as annexure “SR” for ease of reference.
It is clear that the Joint Survey team which was comprised of staff from your department, Surveys and Mapping, Makerere University, NEMA and Surveyors of the parties, concluded that our clients Freehold land titles are on public land. It is however not clear on what basis the minority report could find otherwise and whether this report was intended to serve the interests of the truth or that of the complaint.
Be that as it may, your decision does not attach the Minority Report which appears to have been made outside the terms of reference of the Official Joint Survey.
“We therefore request to be availed with a copy of the Minority Survey report and the typed proceedings of the Public Hearing to facilitate our next course of action.”, Reads Ham’s letter.
The Uganda times has since established that the requested minority survey report based on was only drafted by 2 people against the comprehensive 12 people Technical Report from the Lands Ministry Survey and Mapping Department, Makerere University, and both conflicting parties which leaves us wondering why the commissioner decided to make his directive based on that report.
Ham’s Contest Letter and The Joint Technical Report for the Land comprised at KYADONDO BLOCK 273, PLOTS 23974, 23975, 23976 AND 23977 SITUATE AT KIGO
In the Joint Technical Report of the Survey Carried out By 12 Surveyors and Cartographers including Buganda Land Board’s Bashir Juma Kizito , it was Concluded that; “
Wetlands on Kyadondo Block 273, boundaries and size (acreage).
The wetlands comprised on Block 273 are part of Lake Victoria drainage system and include primarily Kaliddubi and Lufuka wetlands and their tributaries. The wetlands in the Block 273 total to 2085.4 acres as indicated on the map.
Wetlands are protected under the 1995 Constitution of Uganda and hence cannot be alienated by the State. Any use of such area is restricted by law and such use must conform to Regulation 11 & 12 of The National Environment (Wetlands, Riverbanks and Lakeshores) Management Regulations 2000. The only activities permitted in wetlands are those listed in the Second schedule to these Regulations and such activities require a permit by NEMA.
Lake Victoria protection zone
The lower sections of Block 273 forms part of the Lakeshore protection zone as shown in Figure 2. The land comprised in the lakeshore protection zone amount to 445.8 acres.
Lake Victoria shore is specified in the Seventh Schedule of The National Environment (Wetlands, Riverbanks and Lakeshores) Management Regulations 2000. And that shall have a protected zone of two hundred meters and NO activity shall be permitted within the protection zone without a permit issued by NEMA.”
It should however be noted that NEMA already approved and Permitted tycoon Ham through his Kiham Enterprises Uganda Limited to use the Contested Land as in the Approval Certificate bellow;
Kiggundu under Kiham Enterprises Uganda Limited is in advanced stages of building an Integrated Sports Complex called Ham Sports Club. It accommodates three state of the art football playgrounds (including two training grounds), two Olympic size swimming pools, World Class Gym, four basketball courts, four tennis courts, four netball courts, all indoor games, accommodation facilities and a grade four medical health facility. The boundary opening is aimed seeking clarifications and ascertaining the true location of both properties and as a way of confirmation that truly, the two properties are separate, do not overlap into one another, one is a Private Mailo land whereas the other is Public land, and that the only common identifier of the two properties is the shared Plot Boundaries and the fact that they all fall in the same Block and County. According to an earlier report from the technical team constituted by the office of the Commissioner Land Registration, the team based on the findings on the examination and crucial analysis of historical maps, land tenure maps, cadastral sheets, extract of coordinates from land information system and copies of certificates of title of the subject land. It reveals that there was both Mailo and Public land in the area. “The key finding from the investigation is that there is existence of both Mailo and Public land on Block 273 with respective areas of approximately 10587.021 acres and 183.179 acres. Additionally, Mailo and Freehold titles in the area of interest encroach on each other by the extent shown in the report” reads the investigation report. It further continues “This is mainly attributable to the poor surveys that have been carried out on this block. In terms of the existence of wetland and lakeshore, this has been answered in the affirmative with clear extents established according to the NEMA guidelines. For completeness, the extents of wetlands and lakeshores on Mailo and Freehold titles have also been clearly determined and quantified.”
We shall keep you posted with more developments regarding this matter, Just Keep posted.
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