Kiryandongo residents demand final resolution as government surveyor begins fresh land boundary opening
He urged local leaders to avoid excluding one another when decisions are made during the exercise.
Kiryandongo: Residents of Nyama in Kigumba Sub-county, Kiryandongo District, have called for a lasting resolution to a long-standing land boundary dispute as a government surveyor prepares to conduct a fresh boundary opening.
The residents say they have waited for too long for the dispute to be resolved and want the new exercise to be conducted transparently to establish the rightful boundaries and restore peace in the community.
The concerns were raised during a community meeting held at Kaduku II Village, where government surveyor Okeria Sam, deployed by the Ministry of Lands, was introduced to guide the fresh boundary-opening exercise.
Kigumba Sub-county LCIII Chairperson Isaac Museveni Ulama said the exercise should provide a final solution to the dispute, which has affected the community for years.
Ulama questioned changes to some roads in the area, saying routes that were previously straight had developed corners following an earlier boundary-opening exercise.
He argued that the Church of God land title should guide the measurements and insisted that the process should involve all concerned leaders.
Ulama also condemned previous delays, saying the earlier surveyor had failed to produce a clear report explaining the boundary findings.
He urged local leaders to avoid excluding one another when decisions are made during the exercise.
Kiryandongo District Woman MP Jovia Katusime Mbabazi said she had followed up the matter after receiving a directive from Minister of State for Youth and Children Affairs Balaam Barugahara.
Mbabazi said former efforts to open the boundaries, led by Hon. Karubanga, stalled after the district surveyor failed to complete the exercise.
She explained that the community subsequently requested a government surveyor through the Ministry of Lands, leading to the deployment of Okeria Sam.
Mbabazi said Administrator Moses Mwenda had briefed the surveyor on the need to reopen the boundaries and ensure the exercise was conducted openly.
She urged elders and other stakeholders to cooperate with the surveyor, saying peaceful collaboration would help the community reach an acceptable resolution.
Government surveyor Okeria Sam said the exercise would be guided by accuracy and the establishment of the facts on the ground.
Sam described the process as an investigative boundary survey, explaining that he would move around the disputed land with residents from all sides to establish the boundaries.
He thanked local leaders and politicians for accepting the fresh exercise and asked residents to turn up on Monday to participate in the boundary opening.
Former Masindi Port LCIII Chairperson Peter Osajji, however, raised concerns about the history of the disputed land, arguing that Captain Umar’s land had originally been located in Masindi Port rather than Kigumba.
Osajji alleged that the earlier surveyor had been compromised and called for adequate security for the newly deployed government surveyor, warning that interference could undermine the process.
He also said the Church of God had developed the village before the community was evicted.
Kiryandongo Resident District Commissioner Dan Muganga urged residents to remain calm, saying the dispute had existed since 2004 and that previous meetings had failed to produce a lasting solution.
Muganga said authorities had opted for a government surveyor after earlier engagements failed to resolve the matter.
He called on the District Police Commander to deploy sufficient security to ensure the boundary-opening exercise proceeds peacefully.
The RDC said the latest process should help establish the facts and provide a basis for justice.
Meanwhile, residents’ representative Moses Mwenda presented a land title to the RDC during the meeting, saying the document contained information relevant to the boundary dispute ahead of Monday’s exercise.
The fresh survey is expected to help clarify the disputed boundaries, although the final outcome will depend on the survey findings and the subsequent handling of the competing land claims.
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