KAZUNGULA VILLAGERS PROTEST

OVER 1, 000 residents of Kazungula are up in arms over the council’s decision to conduct a plot verification exercise on a piece of land, which they have claimed ownership.

The piece of land in question is now subject to court proceedings as its ownership has been challenged in the Supreme Court.

Kazungula Town Council has claimed that the late Chief Sekute gave the land to the local authority in 1994 and procedure was followed to convert it from customary to state land.

But the residents have challenged this in the courts of law.

When the matter came for judgement in both the High Court and the Court of Appeal, the courts ruled in favour of the local authority but in February, 2023, the residents appealed to the Supreme Court.

The affected residents from five villages have asked the Supreme Court to restrain the local authority from evicting them from the land.

While waiting for the Supreme Court’s decision, the local authority last week embarked on a plot verification exercise that allows it to plan for land development, service delivery and social amenities.

The move angered the residents who stormed the office of the Council Chairperson in protest.

The group demanded for answers on why the council had gone ahead with the exercise when the matter was still active in court.

When reached for a comment, Kazungula Town Council Chairperson Tatila Mbozi said the action to embark on the plot verification exercise was legal and based on the judgement of the Court of Appeal.

Ms Mbozi said the council respects the court’s decision, adding that it needed to quickly subdivide the land and allocate plots.