Mohammed Kamoga, the flamboyant proprietor of Kamoga Property Consultants, will have to struggle getting people to buy plots in his upcoming estate in Bugabo Nalugala Cell in Katabi Sub County near Entebbe Town. Led by their LC chairpersons Ronald Kalema and Augustine Kanakulya (leaders of the two affected villages), the local residents accuse Kamoga of fraudulently acquiring stake in the land they have occupied for decades closely working with IGP Kayihura era rogue police officers, area RDC Rose Kirabira and original registered land owner Mzee Fredrick Kiwanuka Kwatamunsawo.
Kwatamunsawo is among the descendants of Benedicto Nawambwa and Isaac Kiwanuka Sengooba to whom a total of 640 acres of land was bequeathed after the passing of their two mentioned fore parents. Save for the 27 acres that were offered to the surveyors as payment in kind for their services (surveying the land after Sengooba’s passing), the land was shared among the 5 descendants/children and grandchildren including Kwatamunsawo who got 100 acres. According to LC1 Chairman Augustine Kanakulya, the family sharing was conclusively agreed upon during a family meeting of 8th April 2011. It already had bibanja holders/tenants living on the land and in May 2011, Kwamunsawo called them to a meeting and introduced to them Andrew Nganda Bugingo as his son. He told them he is the one they should deal with on matters regarding the land each of them was occupying as a Kibanja holder-without title.
The idea was twofold-those who have money can negotiate with Nganda and buy themselves and get titles. Secondly those without money to buy themselves would forfeit half of whatever holding they were occupying; you sign documents forfeiting a half and this obliged Nganda to process for you the title (free of charge) for the remaining 50% of your land holding. The residents accepted this-those with money buying themselves and those without losing 50% of the same. Kanakulya now says whereas Kwatamunsawo disguised Nganda to be his son, in actual sense he was a buyer and was introduced as a son to avoid alarming residents. Nganda says this is how/why the sale agreement he signed with Kwatamunsawo reflected 50 as opposed to 100 acres. It was assumed the 50 acres would be lost in the surveying and titling process and the attendant compensation. Nganda even registered all the tenants (close to 200 of them) each getting an identification number. However, on seeing the land in what hitherto looked a very remote Katabi neighborhood rapidly appreciating in value because of the Sentamu City that is upcoming nearby, Kwatamunsawo changed his mind and acted smart. This land is particularized as Block 432 Plot 77-163 Busiro. On linking up with Kamoga who is well experience in land deals in this Busiro area, Kwatamunsawo in 2013 showed up unexpectedly and denied ever introducing Nganda to the residents. He said as the registered land owner he doesn’t recognize any of the Nganda transactions and moved to cancel all the titles Nganda had issued. He accused city law firm Agaba &Co Advocates for helping Nganda come up with fraudulent documents which he used to hold himself out as the land owner whereas not. Kanakulya says Kwatamunsawo asked him to go call a meeting of the villagers and denounce Nganda while introducing Kamoga as the rightful representative of Kwatamunsawo. In September 2013, Kanakulya summoned a village meeting and never disclosed to Kwatamunsawo that Nganda would attend.
Kwatamunsawo turned up with Kamoga Mohammed (of Kamoga Property Consultants) and got one of the LC officials to read out a letter from Kwatamunsawo’s lawyers of Kajeke Maguru & Co Advocates had written denouncing Nganda calling him a fraudster. Later in March 2014, there emerged a document evidencing a sale agreement between Kamoga and Kwatamunsawo showing Kamoga had paid Shs150m for the 100 acres that Kwatamunsawo had years earlier sold to Nganda. He arrayed fears of the residents that those who had obtained titles under Nganda would have their transactions recognized and allowed to stand. This position later changed and the residents became angry and assured Kwatamunsawo they wouldn’t recognize his man Kamoga for anything.
This angered Kamoga to the point of taking the matter to court seeking cancelation of all the Nganda era titles. Ironically Kwamunsawo was his co-plaintiff. The duo also caveated all the Nganda era titles, a thing that prompted Kanakulya and Ronald Kalema the other chairperson to report to area RDC Rose Kirabira. They also reported to Wakiso LC5 Chairman Matia Lwanga Bwanika, the area police, the CIID Headquarters Kibuli and the Police land protection unit. Whereas Bwanika sent Wakiso surveyor Joseph Batema who initially denounced Kamoga before a making a strange U-turn on the matter, the rest of the offices didn’t help the poor residents. Kanakulya says Kirabira in fact changed to the extent that, after iniatially acting indifferently saying her work was security and not land matters, she ended up calling a meeting on 12th January 2018 and announced that according to her investigations, Kamoga was the rightful owner of the land. Kirabira later said this was based on a court ruling that was showed to her by Kamoga.
This was distortion because the said court order only directed Kamoga to talk with all the other claimants and have consensus before re-surveying the land seeking to undo the works of the Nganda era. It’s curious how and why the whole RDC couldn’t tell the difference. The residents, led by their LC leaders, also referred the matter to former IGP Kale Kayihura who assigned the police land investigations officer Julius Twinomujuni to handle but the outcome of this was a general inquiries file (REF/GEF 245/14) at Kibuli whose conclusion was that the land belonged to rich man Kamoga. The LC officials say this wasn’t surprising given that the Kayihura era police always worked for the rich and powerful. But as he assigned Twinomujuni, Kayihura had expressed shock as to why all the various pro-Kamoga transfers were effected using one transfer instrument number (WAK-00128993). Kamoga defends his interest in the land on grounds that on 20th March 2014, Kwatamunsawo kicked out Nganda and gave the responsibility to him.
He says in order to rectify the titles Nganda had improperly issued without authority, he dragged Nganda and 19 others to court and won the case. He admits being the one who (mis)interpreted the 9th November 2016 court order to Rose Kirabira who he thanks for mobilizing police to help him enforce the same against Nganda and other residents to whom he (Nganda) had issued titles. Nganda maintains his transaction was and still is the right one in law because it preceded that of Kamoga. He says old man Kwatamunsawo was manipulated to turn against him because as of 2014, the land in the area had greatly appreciated in value compared to what it was in 2011 when the land was first entrusted to him. LCI official Ronald Kalema says no sane person can or should trust or believe in any of the things Kamoga says.
He wonders whether there are any lie the man who lied so much about him can’t tell in order to get the land using improper means. He recalls one time Kamoga asking him to call a meeting of the residents for him to engage with them. “I told him to forfeit Shs100,000 to give to the young man who would move around the villages calling residents on the loud speaker but the man turned round to say this was his evidence that I asked to be bribed by him,” says Ronald Kalema who is clearly full of contempt for Kamoga. All said and done, residents have vowed to die on the land rather than giving way for Kamoga whose claim they say is very fraudulent and selfish meant to make them homeless yet many of them (some as old as 60 years) were born knowing this to be their home-and as such they have nowhere else to go. The residents vowing to go down fighting Kamoga include Dan Mbaziira, Catherine Nankya, Mary Namirembe and James Kamome. Ironically they are old very old people full of grey hair. Having concluded the matter is very complicated, the court has previously (through Justice Alexandria Nkonge Rugadya) recommended mediation maintaining it’s the only way a lasting solution can be forged out of this chaos. For comments, call/text/whatsapp us on 0703164755!
