COSASE raises concerns regarding land titles of project-affected Individuals

The Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) has been tasked by legislators on the Committee for Commissions, Statutory, Authority and State Enterprises (COSASE) to expedite the processing of land titles belonging to project-affected persons (PAPs) throughout the nation.

On Wednesday, March 13, 2024, the MPs brought up the issue during a meeting with a UNRA team headed by Eng. Samuel Muhoozi, the Director for Roads and Bridges Development.

The lawmakers observed that a large number of people whose land was impacted by road construction have not received their land titles back from UNRA, which was in charge of allocating the land they used for their operations.

Inquiring as to when these land titles will be returned to their owners, Hon. Abdallah Kiwanuka (NUP, Mukono County North) observed that a large number of them were stacked up in the lands office and asked Eng. Muhoozi to elaborate.

“What explanation does UNRA have for holding onto these titles? They must tell us what efforts they are taking to retrieve these documents from the lands office,” Kiwanuka said.

People in his constituency who are impacted by the project, according to Hon. Geofrey Kayemba (NUP, Bukomansimbi South County), are concerned about losing their land.

“This issue of land titles is causing commotion and people are scared that someone might come up and try to take their land. Some road projects were completed in 2016 and people were fully compensated, but they were not given back their land titles,” said Kayemba.

MPs also tasked UNRA to explain the reasons for delays in compensation of project-affected persons.

Eng. Muhoozi attributed the delayed payments of PAPs to limited funding for the purpose.

“Since the time budgets were cut due the effects of Covid19, we have not received much of the funding needed to pay these people whose land was affected by road projects,” Muhoozi said.

But even after road projects in some regions of the nation were finished, he did not respond to questions from MPs regarding unresolved land titles.

The Commissioner for Land Registration at the Ministry of Lands, Housing, and Urban Development will be invited to appear alongside UNRA and provide an explanation for the reason why land titles have taken so long to appear in their system, according to committee chairperson Hon. Medard Sseggona.