Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) has allayed the fears that the ongoing compensation of landowners in Katonga Wildlife Reserve could be hijacked by fraudsters and middlemen.
Reports had emerged that some people were opening bank accounts and positioning themselves as the true beneficiaries of the compensation, yet they had not owned any piece of land in the area. A source who claimed to have attended one of the verification meetings said some people who had never had land in the area were trying to position themselves as the bonafide land owners in the area. He said if the process was not checked, the compensation process would not work since then real owners would not surrender their pieces of land easily.
However, UWA has now moved to deny any such people exist. The wildlife authority says the rigorous verification system they used cannot allow middlemen and speculators to have a chance in defrauding the system.
Jossy Muhangi, the UWA Public Relations Manager, says the process of verification took a long time to ensure that the right people are compensated. He says the verification process involved the local council officials, the district team, UWA officials and the offices of the Resident District Commissioners of Kamwenge and Keygegwa.
Muhangi says the landowners were asked to produce original land titles and those administering the land for the deceased were asked to produce original letters of administration.