Land Minister Orders For UPDF To Be Restrained From Contested Land In Nwoya District

The minister of Land, Housing and Urban Development Betty Amongi on Monday directed that UPDF soldiers deployed in a disputed piece of land in Nwoya district be restrained from stopping locals from using the land until the matter is resolved.

Amongi made the directive during a land mediation meeting at Nwoya district council hall. The land under dispute is in Got Okwara Parish, Alero Sub County, Nwoya district.

Locals in the area say soldiers were deployed on the land by Harriet Aber who in Gulu, Amuru, Nwoya and beyond is widely known as the ‘‘wife’’ to Gen Salim Saleh (real name, Caleb Akandwanaho).

Gen Saleh is Presidents Museveni’s younger brother and reportedly wields a lot of power in Uganda although he does not hold any high government office.

Harriet Aber described the accusations against her as ‘‘bullshit.’’

“The entire people who are fighting me are just squatters. They asked me for a space in 2007 to temporarily use the land during the period of displacement in IDP camps. Now they have forcefully ganged to grab the land,’’ Aber said during the meeting.

“All what these people are saying is bullshit; just cheap politicking how do you bring in soldiers to survey the land? I am a lawyer by profession and I know what it takes and which procedure to follow [to survey land],” she added.

The land dispute was brought to the Minister’s attention by the Nwoya Woman MP Lillian Adong in a recent motion in parliament following an escalation of violence over the  the land dispute in Got Okwara Parish.

At least eight households on the land say they are living in constant fear of being evicted by  Miss Aber who they say on 30 May, 2016 planted markstones on the land in the company of UPDF soldiers. The people on the land say they were not consulted.

Aber claims she acquired the 1,000acres of land from one Ogenga Latek-Odong in 2007 when people were beginning to leave IDP camps for their homes after the end of decades of displacement due to conflict.

Minister Amongin advised that Aber should restrain the UPDF soldiers and allow the community to carry on with their activities awaiting for the matter to be resolve amicably on the 15^th August when she [Amongi] will be coming back to Nwoya with a team from the land commission to verify the owner of the land.

“We have discussed with the accused [Aber] to allow the people go back and carry on with the normal life in the area for the next two weeks as we reorganize to come back and settle the matter once and for all,”   Minister Amongi said.