Uganda: High Court Dismisses Naguru Tenants Petition

	Email This Page Print This Page Comment on this article

The Monitor (Kampala)

10 October 2008
Posted to the web 10 October 2008

Ephraim Kasozi

The High Court on Wednesday dismissed a case in which tenants of Nakawa/Naguru have been seeking to block the redevelopment of the dilapidated estates.

The development, seen as a victory for Local Government Minister Kahinda Otafiire over IGG Faith Mwondha, paves the way for developing the estates into a satellite town. The struggle to develop or not to develop the estates, though affected tenants, had narrowed down to a war of words between the two.

Nakawa High Court Judge Joseph Murangira said the developer (Opec Prime Properties) was wrongly involved in the matter.

The tenants, led by Mr Joe Jolly Opio and Mr James Ochom, petitioned the court seeking for a judicial review of the government's decision to redevelop the estates.

The government on October 15, 2007 signed a Public Private Partnership (PPP) agreement with Opec Prime Properties Ltd, a company set up by the Comer Homes Group as a special purpose vehicle to oversee the re-development project and transform the area into a satellite town with over 5,000 flats, bungalows and commercial blocks.

However, the tenants' lawyers led by Mr Caleb Alaka, said the government's decision amounted to evict tenants was a violation of the recommendations of the redevelopment report for the estates.

The judge said the application left many unanswered questions by both parties. "Is cabinet decision an administrative decision or policy decision? At what time should one file an application for a judicial review? Should the developer be affected by the so-called wrong decision?" Justice Murangira wondered. "If the applicant (tenants) suffered loss and damage because of the decision, is that loss and damage cured by an application through judicial review?"

The redevelopment of Nakawa/Naguru estates has raised disagreements between local leaders, tenants and the developer. The Inspector General of Government, Justice Faith Mwondha, in December 2007, halted the project, saying she wanted to investigate the tendering process after receiving complaints from some tenants. Seven months later, Justice Mwondha is yet to produce a report.

She has been involved in a war of words with Local Government minister Kahinda Otafiire, who accuses her office of delaying government business. Gen. Otafiire on June 13 issued a "final and last" warning ordering the residents of the dilapidated structures to vacate by July 12 or face forceful eviction.

But Justice Mwondha on June 16 also issued her own notice directing the residents not to vacate until her office had completed an investigation into the process that led to the award of the re-development tender.

Opec Prime Properties Ltd had issued a notice of intention to sue the government over alleged breach of contract. The company is reportedly seeking up to Shs815 billion from government

Read comments. Write your own.

AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.

Share this on: Facebook Digg Del.icio.us StumbleUpon Muti

Copyright © 2008 The Monitor. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections -- or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.

Make allAfrica.com your home page | RSS Feed Sign up for FREE daily 'top headlines' by email >>

Top | Site Guide | Who We Are | Advertising | Search | My Account

Questions or Comments? Contact us. Read our Privacy Statement.