The family of 91-year-old Valeriano Kibahigire Kambamu in Nyabubaare village, Kamwezi sub-county in Rukiga district, is living in fear after a group of machete-wielding thugs attacked and destroyed their two-acre banana plantation due to land wrangle disputes, leaving the family in panic.
This incident happened on October 25, 2024, in Nyakitabire Hill in Muhanga town council in Rukiga district on a plantation that is part of a larger 60-acre stretch of land extending from Rwanyangye Parish to Nyakitabire Hill in Muhanga town council.
Initial reports indicate that the Kibahigire family is currently embroiled in a legal dispute over this land, having sued eight individuals, including the former Rukiga Resident District Commissioner (RDC), Fred Nayebare Kyamuzigita, for criminal trespass.
In an interview with journalists on October 25, 2024, Mary Kihembo Kibahigire, the caretaker of the family land, expressed concerns about land grabbers who have bypassed the legal process by employing organized criminal gangs to attack the family estate and its workers. She noted that these criminal gangs often evade law enforcement after police make arrests.
Kibahigire also revealed that on October 18, 2024, police arrested five individuals in connection with the incident, including Lawrence Ariho aged 45 years and Baker Tindimwebwa aged 38 years, both residents of Nyakitabire cell in Rwenyangye parish, Kamwezi sub-county; Promise Namanya aged 37 years, a resident of Nyabubare cell in Muhanga town council; Hilary Ndabwine aged 38 years from Muhanga town council; and Laban Tumuranze aged 38 years also from Nyabubare cell in Rwenyangye parish.
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’’Despite us reporting these organized and paid machete-wielding thugs, we are still being threatened and attacked, which makes me believe that there might be some political leaders behind this and want to forcefully grab our land,’’ Kibahigire said.
Kibahigire called on local authorities to take immediate action to protect her family and their property, emphasizing that their safety is at stake.
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Rukiga district has been plagued by ongoing land disputes, often leading to violent confrontations, hence indicating a pattern of violence associated with land ownership conflicts, including other attacks and fatalities related to similar disputes.
A significant incident occurred in March 2023, where two individuals were killed amid ongoing land wrangles. Silver Rubanda, a 61-year-old man, was found dead, and his suspected assailant, Aloysius Byamukama, was also murdered shortly after the incident.
