Africa-Press – Uganda. Lands state minister, Mr Sam Mayanja, has ordered the over 8,000 land tenants, mostly Balaalo who had been evicted from Bajjo central forest reserve in Galilaaya Sub-county, Kayunga District by National Forestry Authority (NFA) to go back on the disputed forest land.
Mr Mayanja, who on Thursday held a meeting with the affected tenants in Kataigwa trading centre in Galilaaya Sub-county noted that claims by NFA that the land is in forest reserve were misleading because there were no any trees on the disputed said land.
“Where is the forest NFA is claiming to conserve? I don’t see it. I now order NFA to pack all its property and vacate this land. I also order that all soldiers and policemen deployed on the land be removed with immediate effect,” Mr Mayanja ordered, amid applause from the tenants, many of them balaalo.
The minister’s intervention came after the tenants, who claim that they have been living on the forest land for over 50 years had been evicted by soldiers and policemen deployed by high-ranking security officers to guard the land.
In the process of eviction, tenants claim, some of their houses were razed and animals stolen.
Last month, officials from the State house anti-corruption unit held a meeting with balaalo, who were promised to get feedback after studying the issue.
Gazetted in 1932, Bajjo Central Forest Reserve covers a total of 3,373 hectares. The forest reserve acts as a catchment area for River Ssezibwa and River Nile which are water catchments for Lake Victoria.
Mr John Ssemugabo the chairman of the affected tenants, told the minister that NFA had allocated big chunks of the forest land to high ranking security and government officials to carry out farming and evicted the sitting tenants, who by law would have been given priority when allocating the land.
Mr Mugabo said a number of homes belonging to the tenants had been razed by soldiers while some of them had been either arrested or battered, and are now on treatment.
The tough-speaking Mayanja, who wondered how people got land titles in the forest land, criticized NFA for disregarding the 1995 Land Act and went ahead to allocate land to new tenants without giving priority to the sitting tenants.
“NFA is Museveni’s enemy number one because it (NFA) wants people to hate him. If all these people are evicted, will the trees vote NRM and Museveni?” the minister asked.
The minister also vowed to cause the transfer of all officials in Mukono area Land office who he said are involved in issuance of more than two land titles on the same piece of land.
He also ordered that the land title issued to Kiira Motors in Bajjo forest be cancelled saying it was fraudulently acquired.
Kiira motors in 2021 bought 2 square miles of Bajjo forest reserve to construct an automobile assembling plant but sources say the project hangs in the balance after NFA dragged the agency in courts of law.
“Courts are also enemies of the president. They issue fake interim orders and instead of protecting tenants they protect land grabbers,” he said.
Mr Moses Karangwa, the Kayunga district NRM chairman said the minister’s directive would save many residents who had become landless after they were evicted from the forest land.
Located near Lake Kyoga, Bajjo central reserve was the only remaining forest reserve in the district after Wamale and Kiwula forest reserves were sold off to sugar cane growers.
Mr Charles Tebandeke, the Bbaale County MP said most of the balaalo who had been evicted from the land were bonifide land occupants noting that the new tenants whom NFA had allocated the forest land want to sell it off to sugar cane growers.
Mr Moses Muhumuza, the NFA head of legal department described Mr Mayanja’s directives as sham and vowed that the minister would have to explain his illegal actions.
He said no one can enter a forest reserve without a license.
“According to the NFA Act, a forest reserve is land preserved for future forestry purposes and not that it should have trees,” Mr Muhumuza said.
He said people from the Galilaaya community who had applied to get land in Bajjo forest reserve had been allocated land and issued with licenses, wondering why the alleged tenants had not applied like others had done.
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