The State House Anti-Corruption Unit (SHACU), in collaboration with the Uganda Police and the Director of Public Prosecutions, has successfully brought charges against Tonny Mutabingwa in the Makindye Chief Magistrate’s Court.
The charges, presented on Tuesday, include the Fraudulent Procurement of a Certificate of Title and Forcible Entry. This legal action represents a crucial advance in the ongoing battle against corruption and illegal land seizures in Kampala.
According to court documents, Mutabingwa, along with accomplices still at large, allegedly forged court orders between December 2022 and March 2023. These fraudulent orders were then used to unlawfully register themselves on the certificate of title for a piece of land situated at Block 244, Plot 8328 in Kisugu, Makindye Division, Kampala.
The suspects reportedly mobilized construction equipment and armed individuals to forcibly clear crops and trees from the land. Following this, they proceeded to grade, subdivide, and sell the land in smaller plots. Mutabingwa has been remanded to Luzira Prison, with the court proceedings set to continue on September 3rd.
The case has been hailed as a significant victory for the victims of these alleged crimes and serves as a strong warning to other would-be land grabbers.
The origins of the case trace back to June of the previous year, when a family in Kisugu, Makindye Division, faced the threat of losing their property to a group of land grabbers, reportedly led by Mutabingwa.
The affected family reached out to Chief Justice Alfonse Chigamoy Owiny-Dollo, urging action against corrupt judicial officials they believed were assisting the criminal activities. The family, beneficiaries of the estate of the late Yosefu Nsubuga and his son, Joseph G.R. Nsubuga, claimed ownership of the land for over 90 years. They recounted an incident on March 16, 2023, when Mutabingwa and a group of individuals allegedly invaded their property at 3:00 AM, destroying their home, crops, and banana plantation, before fencing off the area. The land was then subdivided into 11 plots, with nine reportedly sold to various individuals within just two days.
Upon reporting the case to Kabalagala Police Station, the family discovered that a dubious court order had facilitated the transfer of their land to Ndagire Annet, who subsequently transferred it to Mutabingwa.
The court order, allegedly signed by Her Worship Suzan Kanyange in 2016, was suspiciously enacted in December 2022, after the death of the family’s relative. Despite persistent efforts, the family was unable to obtain a certified record of the court proceedings, raising further suspicions of forgery and fraudulent activities.
The family’s plea highlighted the involvement of a wider network of land grabbers, including certain judicial and land registration officials. They appealed to the Chief Justice for immediate intervention to retrieve the court file and ensure that justice is served.
This case brings to light the pervasive issue of land grabbing in Uganda, often abetted by corruption within the judiciary.
