BY XAVIER LINUS KULE
The Kitswamba Sub-county Chairperson in Kasese District, Mr. Yofesi Katenene has appealed to the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development to expedite the process of legalizing land titles in his area of jurisdiction in a bid to facilitate the free operations of cultivators and cattle keepers.
Mr. Katenene sounded the appeal yesterday afternoon while addressing the Ministry officials at Ibuga Refugee Health Centre II.
According to Katenene, 98% of the lands in Kitswamba Sub-county have no titles, something he says has caused a lot of conflicts among the dwellers.
He explained that with most of the land in his area of command being used for growing crops and animal rearing, cultivators and pastoralists keep on fighting due to the alleged lack of the original owners of land titles, adding that the act poses a security threat to the community members.
Meanwhile, some of the residents including Sarah Kabugho asserted that the farmers in the area of Ibuga – Kisanga had been restricted from carrying out activities in their lands because of the alleged lack of real demarcations and land titles, asking the government to expedite the process as one way of creating peace among the people.
Grace Biira also stressed that the line Ministry needs to quickly intervene into the matter where some government lands have been encroached on by people who bear no legal rights, leaving the residents worried and failing to understand whether the government thinks about its land.
Responding to the concerns, Mr. Denis Obbo, the Official Spokesperson and Public Relations Officer for the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development advised the residents settling on any piece of land that belongs to the government to think of acquiring titles for them, adding that there was committee responsible of registering and demarcating the said lands as a way of helping the people to carry out their routine activities.
ENDS