LANDS CHAOS ON YOU! Minister Nabakooba in Trouble for Messing Up 22 Zonal Offices
Lands Minister Judith Nabakooba
The Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development has acknowledged delays in land transactions at its 22 zonal offices but denied suspending services, saying about 90 per cent of staff have been cleared to access the national land information system.
Lands Minister Judith Nabakooba told Parliament on Thursday, October 22, that the delays followed the transfer of officers who had stayed at the same stations beyond the normal rotation period and a revalidation exercise for access to the National Land Information System (NLIS).
“The delay is not more than a week,” Nabakooba said, adding that applicants would still complete their transactions and pay the required fees.
Her explanation followed concerns raised by Bbaale County MP Charles Tebandeke, who said the disruption had affected land transactions, including mortgage processing.
He questioned the criteria used to transfer staff and asked Parliament’s Committee on Lands to visit the affected offices and establish the extent of the disruption.
Tebandeke also questioned the ministry’s handling of the transfers, saying there were no clear criteria for deciding which officers should move.
He argued that the minister had not adequately addressed the financial consequences of the delays.
Nabakooba said the transfers were intended to reduce the risks associated with officers remaining at the same stations for too long. She said prolonged postings could expose staff to undue influence from land dealers, brokers and agents.
A committee of department heads reviewed the transfers, she said, mainly considering how long each officer had served at a particular station.
She stressed that the changes were neither disciplinary action nor rewards.
“This should not be taken as a blanket indictment of all officers,” Nabakooba said.The minister said some officers who refused to report to their new stations had been denied access to the NLIS until they complied with the transfers.
“Ever since we said no, you have to go, they have since reported,” she said, describing the refusal to take up new postings as indiscipline.
The ministry also said a team from the Ministry of Public Service was reviewing its staffing arrangements.
Nabakooba did not give details of the review’s findings or say when it would be completed.
She disputed Tebandeke’s claim that the disruption had caused financial losses, questioning how the amount had been calculated.“I don’t know how much and who computed it,” she said.
Nabakooba argued that applicants would return to complete their transactions, meaning the ministry would eventually collect the fees. “We acknowledge the delay but still the money will be collected. It is not all lost,” she said.
Tebandeke maintained that eventual payment of fees would not necessarily address the economic consequences for people whose transactions had been interrupted. He urged Parliament’s Lands Committee to visit the zonal offices and investigate both the delays and the transfer process.
Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa, who had asked Nabakooba to summarise her 12-page statement, moved the House to the next item without referring the matter to the committee.
He instead asked the minister to “give more access to Honourable Tebandeke”.
The request for a formal parliamentary inquiry was therefore not resolved during the sitting.
The delay matters because the zonal offices handle services such as land transfers, title searches and mortgage registration.
The ministry’s published service standards provide for five working days to register a transfer on a certificate of title and three working days to register a mortgage, provided applicants meet the requirements.
Under section 54 of the Registration of Titles Act, an instrument affecting registered land does not pass an interest in the land or make it liable to a mortgage until it is registered in accordance with the law.
The delays could therefore affect people buying or selling property, borrowers waiting for mortgage registration and businesses whose transactions depend on confirmation of land ownership.
The ministry says the Uganda National Land Information System supports land registration and related transactions across the country.
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