The Speaker of Parliament Anita Among has dismissed claims that the Uganda People’s Defense Forces is grabbing land that belongs to the Uganda Parliamentary Sacco at Namwabula village off Mityana road from Kampala. This was after the Tororo Woman Legislator Sarah Opendi informed the House that there are reports indicating that UPDF is grabbing land belonging to Members of Parliament.
It was in the Thursday Parliamentary sitting chaired by Speaker Anita Among where the Tororo Woman MP Sarah Opendi raised a matter of national importance. She told Parliament that UPDF is allegedly grabbing the Uganda Parliamentary Sacco land.
Opendi says the increasing impunity amongst some UPDF officers must be checked, tasking the Minister for defence to explain.
Responding to the allegations, the Speaker of Parliament Anita Among confirmed negotiations between Parliament and the leadership of UPDF to compensate the Parliamentary Sacco land, after which the Uganda Parliamentary Sacco will acquire another piece of land somewhere else.
The Chairperson of the Uganda Parliamentary Sacco Robert Migadde also confirmed the compulsory acquisition of this land, asking the UPDF to FastTrack the compensation fee for legislators before any deal.
The land at Namwabula that UPDF wants to compulsorily acquire is 258 acres of which 100 is owned by the Uganda Parliamentary Sacco. Once agreed, it means that they will pay the Uganda Parliamentary SACCO 33.3 billion shillings, for the 100 acres of land that was bought in 2022 at 9 billion shillings.