Ugandans are now used to State Houses agencies (or task forces or units, or other). Many of these units or task forces carry out activities that many Ugandans call ‘a replication of activities legally designated for the formal institutions of government’.
There is the State House Anti-Corruption Unit, Medicines and Health Services Monitoring Unit, Investment Protection Unit, etc.
The agencies or units are so ubiquitous that what matters is not how they are created and by whom. Rather, what matters is a particular unit’s public visibility and a genuine attempt to solve problems for which this or that particular unit was created.
Which brings me to the Presidential Task Force on Land Matters and Environment, a State House initiative focused on combating land grabbing and environmental degradation in Uganda. It is led by Brig Moses Lukyamuzi (who is also a presidential assistant).
The task force investigates land disputes, enforces court orders and works to resolve issues through mediation and collaboration with other government bodies like the police and the Uganda People’s Defense Forces (UPDF).
Its activities are aimed at bringing justice to victims of illegal land acquisition and ensuring compliance with land and environmental laws.
The Presidential Task Force on Land Matters and Environment’s mission is to fight land grabbing and environmental damage by investigating illegal activities and enforcing land and environmental laws. They investigate land disputes and ensure justice for victims.
Enforce court orders on disputed land and work with other government bodies, including the police and UPDF, to maintain order and investigate land-related crimes.
They also mediate in land disputes to find peaceful resolutions and address environmental degradation alongside land issues. Duh! Typical Uganda tings, no? One may ask whether the formal institutions of government don’t have such mechanisms.
As we said earlier, these State House units are many. So, visibility is of the essence. That is why I am giving flowers to Ms Phiona Barungi of the Presidential Task Force on Land Matters and Environment.
Ms Barungi is now the (unofficial) face of the Presidential Task Force on Land Matters and Environment. She is very visible on social media in her effort to resolve intractable land disputes.
Although I have never met her in person, I have watched many audio-visual clips in which she carries out activities aimed at settling land disputes. She is thorough and seems to have a very solid investigative team.
She explains her mandate, but makes sure (in a subtle way) the audience knows she carries some power or influence to turn things up against land grabbers.
In typical Ugandan way of doing things, her task force is low on mainstream media visibility. Although Barungi puts on a tough face during the course of her fieldwork, she doesn’t flaunt her delegated authority, which reminds me of my experience with one of those State House units on this or that.
Once upon a time, I was a close friend to the head of one of those ubiquitous State House units of anti- or anti-that. My friend used to call me to join them on some of their field trips.
My observation was that they were acting childish and didn’t seem to be interested in solving problems. I started declining their invites; however, they continued picking my mind on some issues.
One day, they told me they wanted prosecutorial powers. I advised them against it, asking: Is there a real need for such powers? I advised them to create and keep a good working relationship with the DPP. I suggested that they should ask the Directorate of Prosecution to deploy some attorneys in the unit (instead of having unit prosecutors like the IGG).