By Hannah Marion Namukasa
Following the rampant attacks and forceful evictions in the disputed Apaa area, residents in three villages in the contested land area have called upon President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni and the Army top leadership to save them.
The residents want the authorities to empower the Madi Paramount Stephen Drani Izarake to handle the conflicts and also return Maj Travor Kibuuka to the Apaa area to help in purifying their area.
In the most recent times, at least over 140 people have been reportedly forced out of their homes in the villages of Goro B, Kala-cut, Rwot Orono and Acholi-Ber, Itirikwa Sub County in Adjumani District.
Francis Owor, the LCI Chairperson of Zoka village, one of the villages that has faced constant attacks and forceful eviction says that in Rwot Oromo village, a one Justo Opira was forced out of his land and that the people from the Madi community have since constructed 20 houses on his land.
He said that Bosco Atube, also another victim of the forceful eviction, had his land taken over by more than 40 people who invaded his land, and that they were constructing houses from his compound and spreading across his land.
“We are wondering why a person who has worked diligently for a year without any bloodshed and or disturbances has not been appreciated and promoted but instead being castigated,” another leader said.
They also appealed to President Museveni to expedite and conclusively investigate and bring to book the real culprits.
The locals have now appealed for the intervention of Stephen Drani Izakare, the Paramount Chief of Madi, and Major Travor Kibuuka from Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), who were recently set free by the DPP to rescue them.
According to Owor, as a community, when the two were actively engaging them in peaceful co-existence, the community members both Acholi and Madi lived happily and in relative peace.
“We even had people living and using land freely regardless of their tribes, for example, one Eugene Opira gave part of his land to people from Itirikwa Sub County because Maj Kibuuka and Paramount Chief Drani were continuously engaging us to peacefully co-exist”, he said.
When contacted, Paramount Chief Drani said that continuous attacks are being orchestrated by some leaders from Adjumani district who he says aim at grabbing land.
The cultural leader promised that he would continue to engage the community members in the contested area to peacefully co-exist as they wait for government announcement on their fate.
Recently, locals from Apaa petitioned the Gulu 4th Division Commander to redeploy Maj Kibuuka back to Apaa area saying his presence in the contested land had cultivated some peace.
The locals have since stormed the commander of the 4th Division, Brig Michael Kabango and asked him why the army leadership have continuously insisted on investigating Maj. Kubuuka.
The residents wondered as to why Maj Traver Kibuuka and the paramount chief of Madi, who came and saved the arsonists being beaten by the mob, could instead be accused falsely.
They informed Brig Gen Micheal Kabango that no soldier beat up anyone but it is the Adjumani leadership together with some army officers who are behind all these allegations, just to fight Maj Traver and the paramount chief.
According to the local leaders from Apaa, the fake charges were dropped by DPP and that similar case file was closed by the former Division Commander Brig Gen Bonny Bamwiseki.
They said It is illegal for the army to purport to continue investigating such dropped matters unless they have selfish and have personal interests, to bring down Maj (Traver) Kibuuka.
Last week, the Paramount Chief Drani and Maj Kibuuka were set free over accusations regarding crimes in the Apaa area by the court in Adjumani District.
The court acquitted the duo Chief after the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) dropped several charges against him, jointly with others among them Maj Kibuuka, the Second in Command of the 71st Battalion and Sector Commander Apaa.
