Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Betty Amongi (COURTESY PHOTO)
Lands minister Betty Amongi faces arrest if she does not honour summons to appear before the Justice Catherine Bamugemereire land probe commission’s headquarters in Wandegeya tomorrow, Tuesday May 8.
Ms Amongi was expected to appear on Monday but instead informed the commission through a letter that Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda told her not to avail any information regarding the Land fund until Cabinet approves it .
In the said letter , Amongi asked for more time to first consult Cabinet on Monday before she appears before the commission .
Justice Catherine Bamugemereire’s inquiry into land matters has failed to account for money used.
Justice Bamugemeire warned that if the minsiter snubbed the fourth summons and failed to appear on Tuesday, an arrest warrant would be issued against her and the same will be served on to the Prime Minister, Speaker of Parliament, Inspector General of Police and all the borders of this country to secure her attendance.
Minister Amongi is wanted by the probe team to explain her involvement in the running of the Land fund and how her company AMOBET investments Ltd acquired land located on Plot 29 Acacia Avenue that is allegedly belonging to an Asian family.
Toshak Partel , an Asian property owner last week testified before the commission that Ms Amongi, through a company which he later discovered belongs to the minister, attempted to evict him from his family property located in Kololo.
Pastel told the commission that before the expulsion of Asians from Uganda by then President Idi Amin, his grand parents were the registered proprietors of Plot 29 on Acacia Avenue which was later entrusted to the Departed Asian Properties Custodian Board .
Partel claims that in 1995, his family returned to Uganda and his mother Mandakini Manubai Partel re-possesed the said property, appointing him as care -taker of the property. He added that he then rented the property off to Midcom Ltd, a local telecommunications company.
According to Mr Partel’s complaint, his family was asked to vacate the property in 2017, in a letter from a company called AMOBET Investments Ltd.
The letter stated that the land had never been re-possessed and therefore it automatically reverted back to government.
Partel further claims that a February 15, 2018 letter signed by Ms Amongi on the Ministry’s letter head summoned him, through his lawyers Bitangaro and Company Advocates, to appear at the ministry headquarters for questioning in relation to the alleged forged documents including a land tittle and a certificate of re-possession regarding the contentious property.
Partel told the commission that he then instructed his lawyers to first carry out a search at the registrar of companies to establish the legitimacy and ownership of AMOBET company .
That a check at the Registrar of companies revealed that minister Amongi owns 66% of AMOBET company and the remaining 44% belongs to a one Cate Odongo.
Partel testified that the above revelations clearly show that minister Amongi is using her position to steal his family’s property valued at Shs5 billion.
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