The Ministry of Water and Environment has raised alarm over the destruction of Kifu Central Forest Reserve in Mukono District, accusing a private investor of illegally clearing sections of the protected woodland.
In a letter to the Inspector General of Police (IGP), the ministry requested urgent redeployment of officers to halt what it calls ‘ongoing illegal encroachment’ by Victorious Car Bond, a vehicle dealership that claims ownership of 114 hectares of the reserve. The letter, dated November 18, and written by the ministry’s acting permanent secretary, Mr John Twinomujuni, warns that the investor has begun erasing the forest.
‘The purpose of this letter, therefore, is to request you to urgently redeploy the police personnel to the site to halt, evict, and secure the forest. and prevent any further damage to this important national resource as we also appropriately engage the Minister of Internal Affairs and other concerned stakeholders,’ Mr Twinomujuni wrote.
Victorious Car Bond claims ownership of 114.9 acres of the 1,419-hectare Kifu Central Forest Reserve, which spans Nama and Mpoma sub-counties. But the ministry insists that no individual or company can legally own part of a central forest reserve unless it has been formally degazetted, a process that has never been completed.
The threatened section of the forest is currently used by the National Forestry Resources Research Institute (NaFORRI), a research arm of the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO). This is not the first time the forest has come under pressure.
In 2017, investors argued that the reserve had been degazetted because of urban expansion. Government rejected the proposal, and the National Forestry Authority (NFA) and NARO asked security agencies to guard against encroachment. But the dispute escalated last month when the minister of Internal Affairs wrote to police, directing them not to interfere with the investor’s activities.
According to Mr Twinomujuni, as many as 15 acres of forest are now being cut down each day. ‘The Uganda Police Force has since been withdrawn from the area, resulting into immense damage. ,’ he wrote. Attempts to obtain comment from police were unsuccessful. Police spokesperson Kituuma Rusoke said he would consult and respond, but by press time, he had not.
A woman who answered this publication’s call to Victorious Car Bond said the company would return the call, but it did not. Kifu Central Forest Reserve was first gazetted in 1932 and measured 1,419 hectares by 1998. Despite its protected status, a land title measuring 114 hectares was later issued to Victorious Car Bond.
The Ministry of Water and Environment maintains that this title is invalid. ‘The title. was issued in error, because for that to happen, a central forest reserve must first be degazetted in accordance with Section 8 of the National Forestry and Tree Planting Act, 2003,’ Mr Twinomujuni said. The ministry is challenging the title in court.
The Mukono District spokesperson, Mr Derrick Kaddu, also rejected claims that the district approved or issued the title. ‘The district doesn’t have any mandate to own or manage forests,’ he said. ‘If anyone says the district council did that, let them tell you the council meeting that approved it,’ he added. NFA spokesperson Aldo Walukamba declined to comment, saying the matter is being handled directly by the Ministry of Water and Environment.