Africa-Press – Uganda. The office of the Attorney General has vowed to continue representing four senior police officers sued individually in connection with a disputed piece of land involving businessman Godfrey Kirumira.
The police officers include Kampala East Regional Police Commander Anatoli Katungwesi, Mr Erasmus Twaruhukwa, the police legal director, Mr Edirisa Kyeyune, the Mukono District Police Commander, and Namanve Police Station boss, Ms Norah Akide.
State Attorney Ambrose Ocol, in a sworn-in affidavit before Mukono High Court last week, justified the move to represent the officers on the ground that they were sued for actions done while on official duty and not as individuals.
The four senior police officers are accused of contempt of court by businessman Kirumira for allegedly disobeying a temporary injunction order issued on February 15.
Mr Kirumira is battling over the land in Namanve Industrial Park with the proprietor of Liberty ICD Limited, Prof Minaz Karmali.
The businessman purports that on February 2, the police officers jointly and severally stopped him, his employees and agents from accessing the disputed land and removed a motor vehicle, despite the court order.
The Attorney General represents the State and its employees in legal proceedings and is the chief legal adviser to each government department and certain public bodies.
Presiding judge David Matovu agreed with the arguments put forward by the Attorney General’s chambers to have the four police officers represented by his office.
However, Mr Kirumira’s lawyers said they were dissatisfied with the decision of the court and sought to appeal it before the Court of Appeal, which request was granted.
Justice Matovu said he would visit the land in dispute on November 27 and directed the concerned parties to do the same on that day together with government and private surveyors.
Background
City tycoon Godfrey Kirumira and the local investor Minaz Karmali have been embroiled in a legal battle over a 46-acre piece of land in Namanve Industrial Park for two years now. Mr Kirumira claims he is the registered proprietor of the kibanja but the government and investor said he acquired it illegally.
According to court documents, Mr Kirumira allegedly transferred Plot 393, Block 113 in the heart of the Namanve into his name, yet the land belongs to Prof Karmali.
The alleged transfer was discovered when Uganda Investment Authority (UIA) wanted to buy part of the land and lease it to key Chinese investors for industrial development.
For proper management of the land, UIA argued that the land was placed into the care of Capital Ventures International Limited (CVIL) to conduct valuation and survey before purchase from Mr Karmali is conducted, but it was discovered that Mr Kirumira had allegedly taken possession of the Shs15b land at Shs400m.
The documents also indicate that whereas the stamp duty fees for the land to be transferred were valued by the government valuer at Shs 672m, Mr Kirumira allegedly paid Shs1.25m. But Mr Kirumira said he bought the land from Yokana Galikwoleka Mukasa in October 2017 but Mr Joseph Muwangizi, who has been a resident for the last 30 years, said Mukasa who died on July 20, 1996 was a shamba boy of deceased Charles Kagenya.
Mr Karmali said there is no history of ownership of kibanja, payment of busuulu tickets (issued by the Buganda Land Board), boundary and signature from LCs, prompting him to conclude that the transactions were tainted with fraud and forgery.
However, Mr Kirumira said he took possession of the land after CVIL failed to pay back a Shs 400m loan he had advanced to it.
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