More than 500 people in Luweero are at the verge of being evicted from their homes by a Sudanese Investor to pave way for sugar growing. The affected families are found in Kasaala, Nakitoma, Kasozi and Kyampisi parishes. The disputed land is plot 2 and 267 which are found on Blocks 650 and 250 respectively.
The affected residents say that two Sudanese investors Usama Gubara El Khidir and Omar Khidir Muhamed under Goodman International Company acquired a 44 years lease of the 120.9 hectares of land in 2011 from Bukalasa land board to grow sugarcane. Hassan Kabunga Ssegawa, head of the affected families says that their forefathers acquired the lease of the disputed land in 1964. He explains that they have been using the land to carry out farming activities.
He however says that they were shocked when surveyors of Goodman International Company stormed the area in 2012 claiming their company has secured a lease to use the land and started opening boundaries to pave way for sugarcane growing. Kabunga says that they have never been approached as sitting tenants on the land, adding that the company is using Abduli Nadduli, the LC V chairman to threaten them with eviction.
Deborah Nalumansi, one of the affected residents says that when they petitioned Nadduli he over the matter he ordered them to surrender half of their land to the new landlord they have never seen or be forced to leave. Nalumansi says that she has lived on land as tenant for decades and it’s totally inhumane to displace her with her family to pave way for sugarcane without any compensation.
Nalumansi wonders how people can become homeless in the name of sugarcane growing. Godfrey Muwayire who owns six acres of sugarcane also accuses the land surveyors of maliciously destroying part of his crops and surveying his land without his knowledge in order to grab it.
The residents have vowed not leave their land. They have asked their Woman Member of parliament Brenda Nabukenya to bring the matter to attention of the parliament to block the pending evictions and investigate how the company acquired the lease.
The Luweero Woman Member of parliament Brenda Nabukenya accused Nadduli and Bukalasa Land Board officials for conniving to grab people’s land and vowed to table the matter in parliament.
//Cue in; so we want to know …………………………….’’//
// Cue out;……………………to grab land from the people’’//
Attempts to get a comment from Goodman International company directors were unsuccessful but the chairman LC 5 Abdul Nadduli accused the residents of sabotaging the project and insisted it will go on as planned because the complaints' leases expired and investor got the land under lawful means.
