Prime Minister Dr. Ruhakana Rugunda on Friday headed a committee to handle final negotiations on a protracted Apaa land dispute between the Acholi community in Northern Uganda and Madi community in Adjumani district in West Nile.
The eight-member committee formed by Museveni held third formal and final negotiation meeting at Gulu State Lodge in Gulu Municipality. The committee discussed Museveni’s three recommendations on the disputed land at Apaa.
The recommendations are; relocating the settlers to Acholi area and be supported and compensated by government. Others are allowing genuine land owners settle on the land but are restricted from expanding to gazette areas and offering a portion of land nearer the population area in Adjumani Town which is outside gazeted land.
Dr Rugunda while addressing journalists after the closed door meeting with a government technical team, said members looked thoroughly into the recommendation of Museveni and that they have agreed in the next meeting to give a government delegation a report that will in turn present it to the president on the way forward.
“The view of the government is that we have now reached final stages of consultation. The two teams have been thorough and candid in expressing their views and we are now in the final stages of harmonizing and building consensus, we are very confident that a way forward is very close,” Rugunda said.
The Prime Minister said that the people of Apaa were innocent and that the committee will find an amicable and sustainable solution on the matter.
Backwards, in two negotiation meetings held on 6th and 20th September, the two sides failed to agree on a harmonized position on the recommendations given by president Museveni.
For instance, while the Acholi team have endorsed that government allows genuine land owners to continue settling in Apaa and called for degazettement of the contested land, their counterparts from Adjumani have chosen a total relocation of the locals saying the locals are settling in a gazetted wildlife reserve.
Former Speaker of the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA), Dan Kidega who was the chairman for Acholi team in the meeting however appreciated the president, saying he had constituted a right team to resolve the matter. He added that negotiations have been going on smoothly and that members look forward to concluding the matter. He appealed to the Apaa community to have hope that the matter will be resolved.
Meanwhile, Lawrence Akuti the chairman for Madi team also applauded the leadership of the prime Minister in the matter.He said the people of Apaa need to live a normal life where there no any form of harassment, security threats and more evictions among others
The land wrangle between the two communities of Acholi and Madi has been on since 2014 when it erupted, causing deaths and leaving several others injured as they battled over ownership.