Kerry Howard Mwesigwa.
KAMPALA, November 10, 2023 | The family of the late Sir Apollo Kaggwa, a prominent Ugandan politician and chief in the colonial era, has won a legal battle over their land in Munyonyo, a suburb of Kampala. The High Court in Kampala has ordered the Uganda Land Commission (ULC) to compensate the family for having fraudulently and illegally subdivided their land measuring 14.31 acres and leased it to various developers without their consent. The land in dispute hosts the Munyonyo Martyrs Shrine and Minor Basilica, a church dedicated to the Ugandan martyrs, and other private developments. The land was also traversed by the Entebbe Expressway, a major road project linking Kampala and Entebbe.
The case was filed in 2014 by three members of the family, namely Solomon Luwalala, David Muyise and Apollo Wasswa Basudde, who are beneficiaries of Sir Apollo Kaggwa’s estate. They sued the ULC, seeking orders and declarations that the property comprised in Block 255 plot 98 and 97 Kyandondo is the property of the late Sir Apollo Kaggwa, who died in 1927. They also sought cancellation of all the transfers, plots subdivided out of the said land and the titles issued by the ULC. They further sought damages for trespass and 300 million shillings as compensation.
The court heard that the applicants obtained letters of administration over the estate from the Administrator General in 2012 and 2014, and that the suit land was still in the proprietorship of the deceased, according to the micro film report from the ministry of lands Housing and Urban Development, as of July 5th 2013. However, they later discovered that the land had been converted from MRV 243 Folio 23 and subdivided into plots 97 and 98 of Block 255 and then registered in ULC’s names. The ULC then leased the land to the Registered Trustees of Kampala and private developers on a 99 year lease.
The ULC, in its defense, denied any wrongdoing and claimed that it had lawfully obtained registration of the suit property. It also argued that several transactions had since been carried out in respect of the suit land which were not shown by the micro film report relied on by the applicants. It asked the court to dismiss the suit and did not turn up at the hearing. When parties were asked to file written submissions, only the applicants did so.
In her decision, Justice Alexandra Nkonge Rugadya ruled that the land in dispute belongs to the estate of the late Sir Apollo Kaggwa and that the ULC was a trespasser to the land. She also ruled that the transactions on the land in dispute were illegal and ordered the ULC to compensate the family for the loss of their property. She adjourned the case to November 16, 2023 for assessment of damages.
