By Our Reporter
Energized by the President’s Friday speech in Kyankwanzi where he praised investors bringing capital to adequately exploit Uganda’s gold potential, Dean of RDCs Hassan Kato Matanda has joined the Busia gold war defending the Turkish investor against Mining Police Protection Unit Commandant Jessica Keigomba. As reported earlier by online and mainstream media, Keigomba stands accused of defying three Mbale High Court orders all aimed at halting her criminal interference into the mining activities Mustafa Semih Gecgil, a Turkish investor whose $5m gold mining project in Ttira village Sidukka Sub County Busia district is in disarray after her men raided the site arresting his children, managers and workers. They also confiscated his trucks and mining equipment accusing him of operating illegally. He employs over 100 Ugandans in his gold mining and value addition business. In her defiance activities, Keigomba has defied not only Mbale High Court orders but also clarificational directives from her bosses like Police Director Legal Affairs Erasmus Twaruhukwa, Commandant PSU and Bukedi RPC Caesar Tusingwire. All these have written directives focusing her on the dangers of a mere SP defying court orders. Recently Mustapha’s lawyers secured a ruling finding her guilty of contempt of court and chief lawyer Alex Luganda says they will this week be filing for execution which simply means getting orders of court to cause the arrest of Keigomba who says she won’t be intimidated. She maintains that Mustapha and the other senior officials, ironically including State House’s Mohammed Mayanja, are criminal-minded actors who she will be arresting soon.
MATANDA INTERVENES
Hassan Kato Matanda, who as Dean of RDCs heads all Resident District Commissioners in Uganda, is fully aware of the Mustapha vs. Keigomba Busia saga having served as area RDC for long. Concerned that the President’s efforts to bring credible investors are being sabotaged by subordinate obstinate police officers led by Moses Musinguzi, Matanda has moved to crack the whip on Keigomba who is increasingly distinguishing herself as very powerful and untouchable. Matanda wants her saboteur-like activities stopped with immediate effect because he knows how Mustapha’s Busia local mining partners (the Odimas now working with Keigomba) have in the past mistreated and frustrated similar investors regarding the Ttira Sidukka mines which they consider to be their family inheritance. Working with ISO operatives, Matanda is determined to verify claims that some of the police officers working under Keigomba’s mining police unit are actually involved in gold trade themselves and always ring potential buyers to come and buy gold from them. There are also claims that the same police officers have continued with unauthorized gold extraction in Kisita mines in Mubende even after the President stopped all activities following the gun violence which saw some rogue police officers shoot local artisans dead. Matanda’s team is also verifying information that a one Sarah officed at Entebbe CPS daily collects Shs40m from participants in the illegal mining trade that is continuing at Kisita contrary to the President’s directive. There is also a matter of a one Queen who was last week squeezed by mining police whose operatives extorted $4500 from him on top of grabbing his vehicle saying they can only release it once he coughs another Shs5m. Matanda-prompted ISO operatives are also verifying circumstances under which highly incorruptible Kakuru who was working as legal officer in the police mining unit fell out with a one Tashobya who notoriously used to work as CIID officer Bukomansimbi from where he joined State House Drug Monitoring Unit from which he was acrimoniously expelled. The same unit officers are also said to have detained and tortured Energy Ministry’s Mining Commissioner Zachary Baguma accusing him of not wishing their boss Jessica Keigomba well. There is also a one Robert Kuroba who is notorious for disrespecting court orders as he keeps reminding Mbale judicial officers “I’m only answerable to the President and State House.” Matanda and ISO operatives are also interested in establishing the role of a one Sadiq in the very comprehensive conspiracy plans aimed at dubiously deporting Mustapha for his pursuers to filthily share his mining equipment worth over $4m. The equipment is currently lying idle at Ttira mining site where it was abandoned over a month ago. The matter of Mustapha trauma has been brought to the attention of line minister Peter Lokeris who is understood to have briefed the President about the same. Lokeris is concerned that the Keigomba approach is likely to diminish Uganda’s attractiveness to potential investors in the mining sub sector. Some 5 years ago, Museveni travelled to Turkey where he attracted investors like Mustapha to help him realize his dream of reorganizing local artisanal miners to ensure they produce in a manner that protects the environment while realizing value addition. Like the President explained during his Kyankwanzi speech on Friday, Uganda has vast deposits of gold but which continue to be inadequately utilized because local artisans are only mining it informally due to lack of adequate capital to carry out proper gold mining. The President referred to Buhweju and Ibanda which he said are full gold which he directed Energy Ministry to ensure is properly exploited by attracting investors with capacity to extract it properly. He said the vastness of Uganda’s gold wealth is like that of Katanga Province in DRC. It’s this resolve by the President that Matanda is determined to harness by standing up to the impunity being exhibited by Mining Police operatives.
KEIGOMBA SWINGS
Not one to go down without punching back, Jessica Keigomba has resorted to accusing Matanda of conflict of interest and she has vowed to have him arrested. In fact she has already summoned him to her Entebbe offices to come and answer for over 8 criminal charges. One of them is conflict of interest whereby she says as Dean of RDCs, he isn’t supposed to be involved in any business dealings. She accuses him of having shares in one of the companies involved in gold mining in Busia meaning he has no moral authority to side with Mustapha against her and the men her police unit has deployed in Busia. She insists her summons to Matanda still stand and she will not rest until he is arrested to answer for his involvement in the gold business. Matanda sympathizers fault Keigomba for acting ultra vires because as the President’s representative, Matanda is way above her in hierarchy and its bad manners for her to breach protocol and insist on summoning him directly as opposed to going through her superiors who clearly have already denounced her controversial involvement in the Mustapha business. In an interview with this news website, Matanda confirmed being summoned by Keigomba and said he won’t be appearing before her because she is too junior. Instead he intends to raise the matter for discussion directly with the IGP Okoth Ochora who he expects to meet anytime soon.
