Lwengo district in Uganda has given up prime property to its former Member of Parliament, Hajj Abdul Kitatta, due to an outstanding debt of 30 million Ugandan Shillings (UGX 30 million). The district council’s decision came as a result of their failure to repay this debt.
In 2016, Haji Kitatta donated four acres of land to the district for the establishment of administrative offices. Additionally, the district entered into a sales agreement with Kitatta for the remaining five acres of land for future expansion. Although the district made a partial payment of UGX 30 million and committed to paying the remaining amount within two years, it has been unable to meet this obligation for nearly a decade.
In March of this year, Kitatta issued a notice to the district, indicating his intention to repossess the land, as he had given them ample time to repay the debt without success. Peregrino Ssenozi, the Lwengo district Speaker, explained that they have decided to relinquish the land and return it to its owner, as they had lost hope of raising the remaining balance.
Ssenozi pointed out that despite numerous reminders, the district failed to raise the outstanding balance, and the property’s value had increased over time, potentially resulting in a penalty for the local government due to their prolonged failure to honor the agreement. He added that the council unanimously resolved to surrender the land on the condition that Kitatta would return the UGX 30 million deposit.
Ibrahim Al Malik Kitatta, the Lwengo LC V Chairperson, argued that the property owner had sufficient reason to reclaim his land after the district failed to allocate funds from their budget to clear the debt. He also noted that for the past three consecutive financial years, the district council had passed resolutions to settle the outstanding debt, but the Ministry of Finance had not prioritized the issue. He appealed to other well-wishers in the area to consider donating more land to the local government, citing the district’s constraints in purchasing land for various public projects.
