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    LAND PROBE IN RWENZORI REGION: Police Pinned For Raping Women, Shooting Residents

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    Jack Magezi testifying before the commission

    Jack Magezi (42) a resident of Kicumba sub county Kabarole district has pinned the Uganda Police for raping women on Lake Saaka.

    While testifying before the commission of inquiry into land matters, Magezi revealed that police together with a private security company, security 2000, rape their women when they come to collect water and firewood.

    “My Lord, many of our women are raped by those police officers in their shelter tents around the lake,” Magezi said.

    He further explained that the police officers under the command of Peter Muyambi, the officer in charge of Fort Potal police station, don’t only stop at raping their women but they also insult the entire community. He gave an example of Joseph Ruhapena, one of the residents who was shot and one of his legs cut off. This happened because he refused to tell the policemen the whereabouts of one of their colleagues.

    “My Lord, the policemen found the poor man in his banana plantation, when they were running after some residents who were trying to get water from the lake, when he refused to tell them which direction they had taken, they decided to shoot him and now he can’t feed his family and many of his children went out of the school,” Magezi reported.

    He further testified that these police officers forcefully threw Joseph Busingye, another resident, in water with an aim of killing him, he was rescued from drowning to death by some villagers who heard his shouts.

    When the situation got out of hand, they tried to report the matter to  Musa Tebakerana the District Police Commander (DPC) but he also refused to assist them and told them to go back to the OC station because he was not the one who deployed those policemen around the lake. When they contacted the OC station, he told them that he was working on orders from above.

    He told court that the police were working on orders of Richard Asiimwe the manager of Ferdsult Engineering consult company limited. Ferdsult consult entered into an agreement in 2015 with Kabarole district council, they agreed to restock the Saaka crater lake with fish and leave it for six years without fishing from it. They also agreed that after six years, they will do an assessment for three months to see the number of fish in the lake.

    Land Commissioners probing land matters in Rwenzori region

    The locals persuaded Richard Assimwe to bring his bosses to a meeting, so that they can be sure who they are dealing with because Assimwe was just a worker. Assimwe told them that his boss is too big and cannot be brought to a meeting. When the insisted, he told them that he is working on orders of the first lady Janet Museveni.

    Surprisingly, before the six years had elapsed, the company started fishing with protection from gunmen. This forced the residents to also start fishing which the company refused. The residents took them to court and defeated the company at Fort Portal High Court. The Solicitor General advised Kabarole Local Council to cancel the agreement but they refused.

    When they tried to meet Richard Rwabinga the chairperson of Kabarole district, he told them to abide by the agreement because Ferdsult Engineering consult company was a big company with influential people in government.

    “My lord we thought that we shall be assisted by our leader who is our eye, but he told us that we have to abide by the agreement. We told him that the agreement was breached yet the community feeds on that lake, he just laughed at us and told us that we shall not manage the big people in that company,” Magezi testified.

    They further learnt from Joseph Masuluuko the district councillor Kabarole and also the chairperson of the production committee of the district that the agreement was extended from ten years to 30 years.

    The commission also learnt that Ferdsult Engineering consult company limited is a company limited with shareholders. These were Ferdinand Kamugisha, Enid Mbabazi and Maria Natukunda. The commission is still investigating land related problems in Rwenzori region.

     

     

    By Jamil Lutakome

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    NATIONAL

    Gloves Off As Prime Minister Nabbanja Declares War On Minister Lumumba Over UN Trip…

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    Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja (R) and minister Kasule Lumumba (L)

    Furious Prime Minister who also doubles as the Kakumiro district woman Member of Parliament Robinah Nabbanja Musafiiri has declared a war on Justine Kasule Lumumba the minister of General Duties in the Office of the Prime Minister over the recent trip to United States of America to attend the United Nations Assembly.

    Nabbanja revealed that she was surprised to see Lumumba attending the Assembly meeting because she was not given permission from her as the leader of government business who is responsible for giving ministers and government officials permission to travel abroad.

    She explained that she kept quiet while in US. However, when they immediately landed at Entebbe, she issued a directive not to refund any money to Lumumba and the people she travelled with because they traveled on their own.

    “She will not bring here her fighting practices she has exhibited where she came from. We don’t even have that slot of the minister for General Duties in the Office of the Prime Minister. I directed that she should not receive a refund for the money she used in that trip,” a furious Nabanja told CBS radio.

    She added that she was told that Lumumba was part of the delegation that went with Jessica Alupo the vice president whom Nabbanja said does not have authority to ask because she is her boss.

    She however explained that president Yoweri Kaguta Museveni gave her the green light to travel to the UN Assembly.

    Nabbanja noted that for her to travel to the US to attend the UN Assembly, she first received a special invitation from the UN and report to the president who allowed her to travel.

    She said that while in the US, she meet a number of investors on the sideline of the UN Assembly who picked interest to invest their money in Uganda.

    She added that she also met some of the top leaders of the World Bank who promised her that very soon, they are going to lift the ban they slapped on Uganda because of the Anti-Homosexuality Act passed by the parliament and signed by President Museveni.

    Nabbanja denied allegations that she travelled with a huge delegation including his physical trainer.

    She divulged that she traveled with only five people and among them was his bodyguard, protocol officers and others.

    She threatened to take legal action against the Monitor Publication adding that some papers are used to fight her by publishing malicious stories which put her in bad light before right thinking members of socity.

    “They wrote that I stole Shs9bn which was allocated to teach youths how to drink coffee, yet the money was misused before I was even appointed a prime minister. Enough is enough, I’m going to act against them and you will hear the results,” a furious Nabbanja threatened.

    She explained that her predecessors used to travel abroad with huge delegations but they were never publicised as it was done to her.

    It is on this note that she alleged that her enemies are using the media to put her down but vowed to go down fighting.

    Hamson Obua the government Chief Whip in parliament revealed that during the NRM parliamentary caucus meeting at State House Entebbe, Nabbanja and Alupo were given the opportunity by the president to clear the air over the huge delegation they both traveled with to UN Assembly. They both denied the allegations.

    theGrapevine has established that there has been a silent war between Nabbanja and Lumumba with the Prime Minister accusing Lumumba of disrespecting her and backbiting her.

    Before being appointed a minister, Lumumba, who was the National Resistance Movement (NRM) party Secretary General had a bad working relationship with Dr. Tanga Odoi the party Electoral Commission chairperson.

    theGrapevine made efforts to get a comment from Lumumba over her boss’ allegations against her but her known phone numbers were not going through.

     

    By Sengooba Alirabaki

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    CRIME

    Brig. Gen. Ddamulira Advised To Clear Air On Allegation Of Shielding Criminal Gangs To Avoid Ending Up Like Gen. Kayihura…

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    Criminal Intelligence boss Brig. Gen. Christopher Ddamulira

    Uganda’s representative to the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) James Kakooza has advised the nonsense police’s Director for Criminal Intelligence Brig. Gen. Christopher Ddamulira Sserujogi to come up openly and clear the air on allegation made against him of shielding criminal gangs in Kampala city and Metropolitan areas because he fears a nasty ending like former Inspector General of Police Gen. Edward Kale Kayihura.

    Kakooza revealed that when Gen. Kayihura was at the helm of police leadership, allegations were made against him that he used criminal gangs to solve political questions.

    Kakooza narrated that he severally pleaded with Kayihura that if the allegations are true, he should stop because it was soiling his name.

    He added that Gen. Kayihura’s enemies based on his cooperation with criminal gangs to fabricate criminal allegations against him including pinning him over his involvement in the high level murders in the country.

    He stated that President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni based on the said allegation to fire Kayihura from police leadership and ordered for his arrest and prosecution in the court martial.

    “If president Museveni didn’t handle Gen Kayihura’s issues with maturity and experience, he would have ended up being sentenced to death or life imprisonment because the allegations placed on him were very treasonous. So my young brother Brig. Gen. Ddamulira should come out and clear the air on those allegations put against him,” Kakooza stated.

    He added that Brig. Gen. Ddamulira’s statement will not only cleared him but it will also clear the good name of the UPDF institution.

    Kakooza’s advice comes days after Kira Municipality legislator and also the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) spokesperson Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda accused Brig. Gen. Ddamulira of shielding criminals that beat up FDC delegates and stole their belongings both at Busabala and Katonga where they had gone to attend the Extra-Ordinary Delegates Conference summoned by party national chairperson Wasswa Birigwa.

    The Observer newspaper journalist Baker Batte also accused the criminal gang of stealing his brand new laptop.

    However, while speaking to theGrapevine, Batte confirmed that his latotop was recovered by Katwe police even though they have not yet handed it over to him.

    The ghetto leadership in Kampala city, Mukono, Wakiso districts also issued a statement asking Ssemujju to apologize to Brig. Gen. Ddamulira for tarnishing his name that he is shielding criminal gangs in the city.

    Shafik Kalyango, the coordinator ghetto structures, John Lukuse and Geoffrey Nsamba who were arrested by police for terrorising FDC delegates.

    They confessed that they are members of the ghetto structures which is supervised by State House, Brig. Gen. Ddamulira and officials from the ministry in charge of Kampala Metropolitan whose objective is to turn them into good citizens.

    Kalyango added that they are mobilizing the ghetto youths who have not yet joined their structures to avoid being used by the politicians to fight their battles against their political enemies and among them are those who beat FDC delegates and journalists.

    Ssemujju admitted to having seen Kalyango’s letter on social media even though it he not yet been officially served.

    He appreciated the efforts made by Brig. Gen. Ddamulira to organise youths in the city.

    He added that officially, Brig. Gen. Ddamulira denied having knowledge of the criminals hired by the Najjanankumbi FDC camp of party president Patrick Amuriat Oboi and Nathan Nandala Mafabi the Secretary General.

    Ssemujju however noted that there are elements in security circles who are working with criminal gangs in the city.

    He pleaded with Brig. Gen. Ddamulira to use his office to tame them because they will wreak havoc in the country.

     

    By Sengooba Alirabaki

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    NEWS

    Shadow Minister Warns Speaker Among To Prepare For The Worst As Zaake Asks For Special Audit On Parliamentary Commission…

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    The shadow Internal Affairs ministers who also doubles as the Mukono North legislator Abudallah Kiwanuka has warned his boss the speaker of parliament Annet Anita Among to prepare the worst after the Attorney General Kiryowa Kiwanuka on behalf of the parliament lost the Constitutional petition against maverick Mityana Municipality Member of Parliament (MP) Francis Butebi Zaake.

    In a majority judgment of 4-1, the Constitutional Court allowed Zaake’s petition and declared the actions of Speaker Among to dismiss him from the parliamentary commission illegal.

    Court ordered the Attorney General to pay half of the costs of the petition.

    In her leading judgement, Justice Irene Mulyagonja supported by the judgment of other justices who include; Justice Eva Luswata, Justice Muzamir Kibedi and Justice Oscar Kihika declared that the then deputy speaker Among acted as a judge in her own case when she continued chairing the parliament in a matter which she had personal interest which resulted into contravening with Article 2(2),(2), 8A, 28, 42, 44(c) of the constitution.

    They added that parliament violated rule 111(5) of the Rules of Procedure of the parliament during the debate of the motion to remove Zaake from the office of the Commissioner.

    The amendment of the recommendations in the report of the Committee on Rules, Privileges and Discipline to include a recommendation that Zaake be removed from the office of the commissioner had no legal basis and was illegal.

    However, Justice Catherine Bamugemereire disagreed with other members of the panel and dismissed the application but her judgment was defeated by the majority judgment.

    The entire legal battled started in 2022 when speaker Among made statements while presiding over plenary concerning legislator Zaake’s gold medal win in the East African parliamentary games even though he claimed he was still nursing torture wounds as a result of State operatives torture which did not went well the youthful legislator.

    Zaake took his anger to social media and blasted Among which resulted into his dismissal from the parliamentary commission.

    However, Kiwanuka insists that Zaake’s win in the Constitutional Court is a vote of no confidence from President Museveni explaining that if he wanted Among to win, she would have won.

    He insisted that Museveni wanted to show that she doesn’t have the powers she thinks she is exhibiting and she should be very careful because very soon, she could be impeached from her office.

    Kiwanuka explained that Museveni has been sending serious warning signals to Among that she is nothing.

    That’s why he refused to respond to her when parliament impeached junior Lands, Housing and Urban Development minister Persis Namuganza.

    Namuganza is still sitting on the front benches at parliament where ministers sat even after her impeachment.

    Kiwanuka’s warning comes hours after Zaake boasted that he is going back to the parliamentary Commission in high gear and he will start with asking for a special audit on the funds which were okayed by the parliamentary commission to be used by parliament.

    He insisted that one of the reasons why he was illegally dismissed from the parliamentary Commission was because he questioned the manner in which the money was released and sabotaged some of the deals in the commission.

    Zaake asked fellow legislators like; Dr. Twaha Kagabo, Jim Lukwago to believe in themselves and stop taking looking at Among as goddess because she can also be defeated.

    However, Kira Municipality legislator Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda warned Zaake that even if he has won the court case, he might fail to perform as a Commissioner as a result of being frustrated by fellow commissioners.

    He pleaded with the Leader of Opposition in Parliament Mathias Mpuuga Nsamba to talk to the speaker so that she mends her relationship with Zaake to create a good working relationship.

    The Attorney General has already filed a notice of appeal to the Supreme Court against Justice Mulyagonja’s leading judgment.

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