A Ugandan citizen named Andrew Muyonga Mubiru is awaiting a court decision regarding the cancellation of land titles for 13 investors in Namanve Industrial Park. The judgment is expected today, May 15, 2024, from Justice David Matovu of the Mukono High Court.
Mubiru is represented by lawyer Francis Ssebowa, who also represents Godfrey Kalule Kirumira, the Consul of Namibia in Uganda, in a related land dispute in Namanve. Mubiru’s case argues that the government, through the Commissioner of Land Registration, issued the land titles illegally.
The disputed freehold land titles include plots in Kyaggwe Block 113 Plots 1447, 1278, 1455, 1501, 1502, 1503, 1504, 1505, 1453, 1631, 1633, 1256, 394, 391, 396, 395, 2559, 2560, and 1448, located at Nantabulirirwa in the Mukono district.
Last year, Mubiru brought a case to the Mukono High Court against several entities: the National Forestry Authority (NFA), the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA), the Commissioner of Land Registration, and the Attorney General of Uganda. Mubiru claims that these entities failed in their legal responsibilities to protect natural resources.
The investors involved in the case include Patel Hirji Sureshkumar, Luo Xiao Ming, Kanji Lalji Hirani, Mul-Kin Enterprises Ltd, Tenghui Industrial Co-SMC Ltd, Liberty ICD Limited, Narendrakumar Vithalbhai Patel, Joseph Emoit, Gerald Godfrey Ssambwa, Firoz Rajabali, Jamani Shaahid Ramzan Ali, and Redcorr Uganda Ltd.
Mubiru’s main argument is that these entities did not fulfill their statutory duties, which led to the illegal issuance of the land titles. He believes that the cancellation of these titles is necessary to uphold his human right to a clean and healthy environment and to preserve natural resources, as stated in the Constitution.
On the other hand, the respondents argue that Mubiru has no legal standing to sue since he does not own any property within Namanve Industrial Park. The investors also claim that similar issues have already been decided by the High Court in previous cases.
In 2022, Justice David Batema, now serving at the Iganga High Court, ruled that the land titles in Namanve Industrial Park were issued legally. He prohibited the Commissioner of Land Registration from canceling these titles and instructed government officials to stop marking and managing land in ways not recognized by the legal land management and registration systems. This ruling stated that approximately 900 acres of land no longer belong to the Namanve Forest Reserve, nullifying an NFA letter to Mubiru from April 29, 2022, which claimed that the plots were part of the Namanve Central Forest Reserve and wetland.
The 2022 judgment was related to a case filed by Capital Ventures International Limited against the Commissioner of Land Registration, NFA, and the Attorney General in 2021 concerning plots in Namanve Industrial Park.
Now, Justice David Matovu will deliver his verdict on Mubiru’s case, which could potentially overturn the previous ruling and result in the cancellation of the land titles in question.
