By Mulengera Reporters
A fresh legal battle has erupted in Uganda’s land administration sector after a Mukono-based landowner dragged the Commissioner for Land Registration back to court, accusing the government official of defying a High Court order issued nearly a year ago.
Richard Katongole has filed a contempt of court application before the High Court Land Division in Kampala, seeking the arrest and civil imprisonment of the Commissioner for Land Registration for allegedly refusing to implement a court directive that vested ownership of a 2.2-acre piece of land in his name.
The application, filed through M/S Lukwago & Co. Advocates, arises from a previous victory Katongole secured in Miscellaneous Cause No. 0051 of 2023. In that case, the High Court, presided over by Justice Ida Nakiganda, issued orders on July 16, 2025 directing the Commissioner to transfer ownership of land comprised in Kyaggwe Block 255, Plot 27 located at Lusera-Ntakafunvu, Kyabalogo Parish, Nakisunga Sub-county in Mukono District to Katongole and issue him with a duplicate certificate of title.
However, according to court documents filed before the Land Division, the orders have allegedly remained unimplemented despite being formally served on the Commissioner’s office on the very day they were issued.
The latest application seeks a series of sanctions against the Commissioner, including arrest and detention in civil prison, an order compelling immediate compliance with the court directive, and, in the alternative, the payment of a court-imposed fine for disobedience of lawful orders.
“The Respondent has disobeyed and/or defied the said order by refusing and/or declining to put the court order into effect,” Katongole states in his supporting affidavit.
Court records indicate that after obtaining the July 2025 ruling, Katongole personally wrote to the Commissioner for Land Registration requesting implementation of the court order. The letter, dated July 16, 2025, attached a certified copy of the judgment and requested urgent action to effect the vesting of the land and issuance of a duplicate title.
When months passed without any action, Katongole escalated the matter to the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development.
On September 10, 2025, he wrote to the Permanent Secretary, Mrs. Dorcas Okalany, seeking intervention and expressing frustration over what he described as endless delays and unsuccessful follow-ups.
In the letter, Katongole said he had repeatedly visited the relevant offices only to be informed that the file necessary for implementation could not be traced.
He argued that sufficient time had elapsed since the court order was issued and that continued delays were causing him significant hardship.
“I feel I have allowed enough time since 16th July when I submitted my request on top of making repeated follow-ups under the same excuse,” he wrote.
Despite the appeal to the ministry’s top accounting officer, Katongole says no meaningful action was taken and the order remains unenforced.
In his affidavit, he argues that the Commissioner’s continued failure to act amounts to wilful disobedience of a lawful court order and threatens the authority of the judiciary.
“To date, the Respondent has disobeyed and/or defied the said order by refusing and/or declining to comply with the court order for a period of over eight months,” he states.
Katongole further contends that he has suffered prejudice, inconvenience and uncertainty as a result of the failure to implement the court’s directives.
The dispute now places the spotlight on the often-contentious relationship between court orders and administrative implementation within government institutions, particularly in land-related matters where delays can have significant consequences for property owners.
Legal observers note that contempt proceedings against senior public officials are relatively rare but can have serious implications when courts find that government officers have deliberately ignored lawful directives.
The application invokes Section 37 of the Judicature Act, Sections 64(a), 64(e) and 98 of the Civil Procedure Act, as well as provisions of the Civil Procedure Rules that empower courts to enforce compliance with their orders.
Should the court find merit in Katongole’s application, the Commissioner could face punitive sanctions aimed at compelling obedience to the July 2025 judgment.
The underlying dispute itself had already been resolved by the High Court when Justice Nakiganda ordered that the disputed land be vested in Katongole’s name and directed that a duplicate certificate of title be issued in his favour. The court also directed that Katongole meet all statutory fees required to complete the registration process, while each party was ordered to bear its own costs.
The latest proceedings, therefore, are not about ownership of the land but about enforcement of an existing court order that Katongole says has been ignored.
The case is expected to attract significant public interest, particularly among landowners and legal practitioners who have long raised concerns about delays in implementing court decisions affecting land rights.
For Katongole, the application represents a final push to secure the benefits of a judgment he obtained nearly a year ago. For the judiciary, the matter could become an important test of the extent to which court orders can be enforced against senior government officials who fail to act.
The contempt application is scheduled to come up for hearing before the High Court Land Division on July 7, 2026, where the court will determine whether the Commissioner for Land Registration should be sanctioned for the alleged defiance of its orders. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
