Enock Ndyamuhakyi | Tayari News
RUKIGA-The Minister of Local Government, Balaam Barugahara, has ordered the reopening of disputed government land housing Rushebeya Market in Rukiga District, directing traders and residents to resume using the property as the government moves to resolve the longstanding ownership dispute.
Barugahara issued the directive on Thursday during his nationwide anti-corruption campaign after visiting the contested land at Rushebeya Trading Centre in Rwamucucu Sub-county.
The land was fenced off in April 2026 by former Rukiga District Woman Member of Parliament Caroline Kamusiime Muhwezi and her husband, Andrew Muhwezi, according to residents, restricting public access to part of the property traditionally used for a market held twice a month.
The minister directed residents and traders to resume using the land as the government works with the Chief Government Valuer to establish the compensation payable to the affected parties.
He said the couple should seek legal redress against President Yoweri Museveni if dissatisfied with the presidential directive instead of preventing the public from accessing the property.
“The land should remain accessible to the public as the government works to resolve the dispute and establish the compensation payable to the affected parties,” Barugahara said, according to the reported substance of his directive.
Residents told the minister that the couple had allegedly threatened to shoot anyone who trespassed on the fenced-off section, raising concerns about access to the market and the security of people operating in the area.
The minister also ordered the arrest of Barbra Tukamuhabwa, a tenant accused by her landlord, Julius Arineitwe, of failing to pay Shs2 million in rent.
Tukamuhabwa was subsequently arrested and taken to Rukiga Police Station.
Arineitwe alleged that Tukamuhabwa stopped paying rent after the land was fenced off, claiming she had been instructed by Kamusiime and her husband not to make the payments.
He said he constructed his lockup in 1993 and had relied on rental income from the property for years.
“I constructed this lockup in 1993 and have been renting it out for my livelihood,” Arineitwe said, according to the account provided.
He accused his tenant of withholding Shs2 million in rent, a matter that the minister directed should be investigated.
Barugahara further directed that Tukamuhabwa be handed over to the State House Anti-Corruption Unit over allegations of colluding with individuals accused of taking over public land and frustrating the landlord.
The allegations against Tukamuhabwa and the couple had not been independently established by the time of publication.
Rukiga Resident District Commissioner Zadock Kamusiime said security officials convened a meeting shortly after the land was fenced off to discuss the dispute and alleged non-compliance with a presidential directive concerning the compulsory acquisition of the property.
He said the government was expected to compensate the affected parties, but the land was supposed to remain under government control for use as a public market and for other public functions.
“The government is expected to compensate the affected parties, but the land is supposed to remain under government control for public use,” Kamusiime said, according to the reported substance of his remarks.
Neither Caroline Kamusiime Muhwezi nor her husband was present at the disputed site or Rukiga District headquarters during the minister’s visit to respond to the allegations.
The disputed property is located along the Kabale–Kisiizi Road in Rukiga District.
The conflict over the land dates back several years. On November 8, 2017, unidentified individuals reportedly began surveying the market land. Shortly afterwards, inmates from Ndorwa Government Prison were deployed to demarcate and fence off the property.
Local residents reportedly intervened and attempted to lynch the inmates, prompting their evacuation.
The dispute is also linked to a court case involving Rwamucucu Sub-county and David Gakyaro. In 2015, Gakyaro sued sub-county leaders, accusing them of cutting down his trees without authorisation.
The Kabale High Court subsequently ordered the sub-county to pay him Shs11 million in damages. However, the local government reportedly paid only Shs6 million.
Gakyaro later returned to court, which issued an order allowing him to attach the market land after the then sub-county chief, Justus Ampeire, and LCIII chairperson Justus Tushabomwe reportedly failed to appear in court to testify.
In April 2026, another section of the land was fenced off by individuals led by Kamusiime and her husband, reportedly under security protection, leaving the area inaccessible to the public.
Barugahara’s latest directive seeks to restore public access to the market while the government works to establish the compensation payable to the affected parties and resolve the ownership dispute.
The reopening is expected to enable traders and residents to resume using the contested property as the government pursues a resolution to the longstanding dispute.