Hoima district council has approved its new land board committee after one year of services without the board members.
The absence of members gave room for the increase in the number of unprocessed land titles. This gap led to illegal land titling in the district.
During the council which was conducted on Monday afternoon, a committee of five members was approved to constitute the land board in the district.
Byarubanga Kakoraki Frederick is the chairperson with Byenkya Hussein, Onzima Luke Patrick Badra, and Kyotamanya Gerald as members. They succeed Ireeba Yustansi, Kyaterekera Mary Aliba, Byaruhanga Samuel and Nyangoma Alice.
Uthuman Mugisha Mubaraka, the LC5 chairperson revealed that “currently over 150 land title applications remain in the district with no one to work on them.”
Appointing the district land board and public accounts committees, Uthuman said, would help solve all challenges faced within public sectors, including land cases by providing an immediate land title acquisition process.
Recently, the district received about 1,400 land titles under the Systematic Land Adjudication and Certification (SLAAC) project. However, the project remained paused since the district lacked the responsible authorities to handle it.
The chairperson cautioned against bribery, urging the land officials to handle office without impurities.
“Say no to bribery and make sure that you get clear information about any land before approving land title applications for processing. By doing so, we shall be able to fight all land issues in our communities,” he urged.
However, Kumakech Geoffrey, the district councillor for Buseruka sub-county, challenged approval, saying that there was no clear criteria used in selecting the committe. He cited “regional imbalance.”
“I still remain concerned about the regional imbalance of the approved land committee. You cannot have more members from the same area leaving some places unpresented.”
According to Kumakech, having representatives from different places helps identify clear information about land applied for titling.
“We expected at least an individual from either Buseruka or Kabale sub-counties to appear on the committee since this helps us know clear information about [lands] and people applying for their titles,” he said.
Some people from hard to reach areas can easily apply for land titles covering even protected areas, Kumakech noted.
Beatrice Wembabazi, the Woman MP for Hoima district pledged cohesion to ensure effective service delivery.
Darlison Kusiima, the female district councillor for Bombo, expressed concerns over the abuse of office, warning the officials against using their offices to benefit from a common man.
Hilary Tumusiime, councillor for Kyabigambire, and Dickson Kampereza have rallied communities to use the board members to secure their lands by processing titles.
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