Uproar and raising dust as Government has concluded the deal to give away Kitubulu forest reserve in Entebbe Municipality, Division A.
This follows after a senior government Evelyn Anite sealed up the juicy deal with a Chinese investor Paul Zhang and offered 150arces of forest land.
The matter has raised concern and dust after the state minister swallowed up the juicy deal and
The local community including politicians, media and students have raised eyebrows over the minister’s decision to destroy the forest reserve and bird sanctuary to develop a multi billion-complex.
The local community last Friday gathered at the forest land and raised voices plus planting trees under the restoration campaign, headed by the Mayor Fabrice Brad Rulinda of Entebbe Municipal Council.
It was a special gathering with lots of people querying how ‘government’ took a tough decision to give away the forest land to an investor.
Several personalities including the Entebbe Municiplaity H.E Mayor Fabrice Rulinda and Katabi Mayor Kalema Basamurekere attacked government over dishing out the forest land to an investor.
‘We are protecting the forest, we are not looking for votes’ echoed Entebbe Mayor Fabrice.
The minister advised the president wrongly without considering the environmental factor, noted Mayor Kalema.
It has been revealed and rumored that some top notch in the government have titles in the forest reserve and rumors have it that the titles have cancelled.
In 2007, we planted trees to protect our forest resources and protect the land from land grabbers, said Joyce Namuli Nabatta, also an aspiring Entebbe parliamentarian.
Removing or fragmenting this forest will degrade wetlands, destabilize soils, and amplify flooding for communities around the lake, said report.
The planned giveaway has sparked widespread public outrage, with civil society groups and environmentalists accusing some government officials of prioritizing private interests over national environmental commitments.
The forest deal is worth a staggering $500 million with a tax holiday of over 20 years while the Chinese investor under Tian Tang Group will erect a mega government complex, five-star hotel, hospital, and shopping mall right inside the protected forest land.
