President Museveni has invited the Kabaka of Buganda Ronald Muwenda Mutebi, the Sabanya and the Isabaruli for a meeting to resolve long standing disputes over their co-existence.
Through the Office of the Attorney General, the president directed top officials from Buganda Kingdom, Buruuli and Bunyala cultural groups for a meeting to find ways of settling tensions between the Buganda kingdom and the affiliated chiefdoms.
According to letter dated January 17, the Attorney General, Mr William Byaruhanga, the cultural institutions will meet on February 7 to discuss timelines and modalities of implementing particular clauses in the agreement signed between President Museveni and Buganda Kingdom in 2013.
The MoU
According to the memorandum of understanding signed by President Museveni and the Kabaka of Buganda, Mutebi in 2013, the government had agreed to return the kingdom property that include all counties’ and sub-counties’ administrative buildings and land, Jesa Farm on Mityana Road, Mutesa House in London, which was sold by the Milton Obote government, Plot 52 on Kampala Road which houses King Fahd Plaza, and all land belonging to the kingdom.
In addition, kingdom land which tenants have “illegally” occupied over the years was also to be returned but Mengo and the central government would decide on the fate of those tenants.
All markets belonging to the kingdom were also to be retuned but those under construction or already built would be subject for further discussion between Mengo and central government.
This and more issues in the MoU are expected to be high on the agenda as the cultural leaders meet President Museveni’s government representatives.
The meeting is important since some properties that government nees to return may fall in either of the chiefdoms yet they have for long called for cesasation from the Mengo administration.
Although the government had agreed to return the kingdom property, President Museveni had made it clear to Mengo that nobody should think about evicting tenants that have lived in the affected areas for some time.
Attorney General explains
“You will recall that His Excellence the President of Uganda while meeting a delegation from Buganda led by the Katikkiro promised to meet traditional leaders of Bunyala, Kooki and Buruuli to agree on the mechanism of implementing Clause (B) Subsection (C) IV of the Agreement. The said Clause is indicated in the above agreement, but its mode of implementation was not provided,” the letter states in part.
The letter was also to Ms Flora Kiconco, the Head legal Department State House, Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Kahinda Otafiire among others.
This meeting will pave way for a final meeting with President Museveni in State House.
“Before the President meets the traditional leaders ,it would be prudent if we first had a meeting to agree on the modalities of implementing Clause (B) of subsection (IV) of the agreement to guide the President on the way forward on this matter.” the letter adds.
Disagreements
Last month, the Minister for Security, Henry Tumukunde temporarily intervened to halt the reconstruction of Kabaka’s palace in Nakasongola District which was burnt down by unknown people.
Gen Tumukunde had argued that the action was meant to avert possible confrontation between the Baruuli and Baganda Kingdom loyalists.
It should be remembered that Baruuli and Banyala cultural leaders have had long standing disputes over ownership of land in both Nakasongola and Kayunga Districts.
For instance in 2009, the central government intervened to stop the Kabaka of Buganda from touring Kayunga district, a development that left over a dozen Kabaka loyalists dead.
