More residents of Sembabule District have come up pinning the embattled district senior lands management officer Emmanuel Champion Kananura, claiming that he obtained money from them to process their land titles, but they were never issued.
On Friday, a group of 10 residents from Kitahira Village in Mitima Sub County in Sembabule District pitched camp at the district lands offices claiming each paid Shs3million to Kananura in 2024.
"I paid Shs3.5million to Kananura in 2024 to get me a land title and I have the receipt, but he kept deceiving me all the time until recently when we heard that the State House Anti-Corruption Unit had arrested him for allegedly extorting money from residents for processing land titles in the sub counties of Lwebitakuli, Lugusulu and Lwemiyaga," John Bosco Mugumya, one of the family members of late Paul Kantanyomba from Mitima Sub County complained.
Some of the other complainants from Mitima Sub County include Ezekel Butunda, David Rwamasaka, Jane Kyamukondo, Frank Kyanshaija, Mesarch Rugaaju who also never received their land title yet they paid the money to Kananura.
Kananura was arrested and arraigned before the Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court early this month and later remanded on charges of embezzlement, abuse of office, corruption, and obtaining money by false pretence.
Kananura's scheme was exposed during the Minister of Local Government Balaam Barugahara's "Expose the Corrupt" campaign in Sembabule early this month, where victims raised complaints.
Prosecution alleges that between August 2024 and August 2026, Kananura illegally collected between Shs1.5 million and Shs6 million from land title applicants under a government-subsidized scheme, accumulating nearly Shs1 billion.
The programme, funded via the Uganda Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfer project, was intended to lower titling costs under a presidential directive.
Sembabule Deputy Chief Administrative Officer, Richard Kizza has advised the affected residents to be calm as their concerns are being looked into.
"Mr Kananura's office is still closed following his arrest, even the District Secretary for land, Mr Michael Kakulu was arrested over forgery of land titles, abuse of office and extortion of money from residents. So, this interrupted the whole process, but we are trying to see how the affected residents can be helped," he said.
Sembabule Resident District Commissioner, Jane Francis Kagaayi said it was wrong for the affected residents to pay money to get the service since the process was entirely free of charge.
"This was a government programme which kicked off in 2024 and residents were not supposed to pay any money. It is unfortunate that the district lands officer and the district community office failed to sensitise residents on how they can acquire titles for free," she said.
She added: "That's why some unscrupulous individuals in the district lands office are taking advantage of people's ignorance about the programme to hoodwink them."
She said the number of residents complaining about Kananura's misconduct had risen to 87.Speaking at a stakeholders meeting in Masaka City last week, the Minister for Lands, Ms Judith Nabakooba warned district lands officers and area lands committees against engaging in forgery of land titles and double titling.
"Enough is enough, I am tired of getting complaints about lands officers engaging in double titling on public land. Those implicated will be arrested and charged in courts of law," she warned.
Early this month, the State House Anti-Corruption Unit, in collaboration with the police Criminal Investigations Directorate, arrested Mr Colbert Zziwa Tamale, the senior lands officer at the Masaka Ministry of lands zonal office over alleged illegal issuing of 265 land titles on government central forest reserves and private land.
