The LC1 chairperson of the Cam-Tegot River Nile Village, Lakanga parish Amuru Sub-county Mr Gaudencio Okwera was recently beaten up with his family after being accused of sponsoring “land grabbing” in the area.

  

Okwera who survived lynching at the hands of a mob on the 25th of last month said that his children and father Mr Celemente Icum, 60 years old were also beaten by the mob that attacked them when they had gone to their garden to dig.

 

Okwera has been the chairperson of the area for the last six month, and in march started receiving threats from locals that they did not want the LC system in the area adding that they are the ones who are spearheading the Madhvani interest of grabbing land in Amuru.

 

“When they approached me, they asked for the LC stamp and immediately they started beating all the family members,” Okwera narrates.

 

“One of my father’s limbs was broken and the children were beaten until we run and hid in the bush; five of my family members are still in hiding including my wife and our two year old child,” he continued.

 

The mob destroyed four huts, ate 40 chickens and took some with them; they also went away with shs 1.25 million.

 

Okwera says that since the war ended in 2006 they returned to their ancestral home and thought that they had security and protection.

“We need security from the security organs so that we can go back home, otherwise our lives are at a risk, my children can no longer access education.

 

Amuru District Police Commander Mr Justo Ovulu said that they had launch an investigations into the matter and it is ongoing adding that land wrangles in the district are the major cause of misunderstanding among the returning communities.

 

The RDC for Amuru Milton Odongo said that the Madhvani Group of Company’s case is in court, communities should not kill each other on those grounds.  “There is no need to kill each other because of land,” Odongo said.