To her OBs and OGs at Uganda Martyrs Namugongo SS, Claire Amanya Rukundo was the definition of law-abiding. She never cut classes, never dodged mass, never missed preps, never escaped from school and did not have many interests outside academics.
That is why when the UACE results were released in 2001, it did not come as a surprise when she emerged the best Arts student in the country.
Twenty-three years later, Rukundo is a thriving lawyer in town and managing partner CR. Amanya Advocates. She is also an oral interviewer at the Law Development Centre (LDC).
To many up and coming lawyers especially the females, she is a great inspiration.
To Julius Kakeeto, the managing director of Post Bank, she is a loving and supportive wife.
Yet to David Mpanga, a prominent lawyer and minister in Mengo, she has lately become a pain in the a**e.
Let’s delve into the real story.
Some years ago, Rukundo bought land in Kigo, on the shores of Lake Victoria. The roughly three-acre piece of land cost upwards of Shs 1 billion, according to sources knowledgeable about the matter.
The land is administered by Buganda Land Board (BLB) because it is part of kingdom’s land.
Unknown to her, Peter Brian Kaggwa of Events Warehouse, owned a piece of land that shared a boundary with Rukundo’s land on which he was constructing a palatial home.
Now Rukundo claims that in an effort to grab her land Kaggwa went to BLB and with the “aid of mafias’ secured a land title for the entire 2.9 acres. He secured the title and a lease of 49 years.
Rukundo cried foul, ran to BLB for redress. After investigating the matter BLB issued its findings.
In a letter dated October 19 2023 to Kaggwa, BLB’s chief executive officer Simon Kaboggoza acknowledged that the businessman had been given the title in error.
“You are required to return your certificate of title within 15 days from the date of the receipt of this letter together with a consent letter for subdivision and the transfer to Mrs Claire Amanya Rukundo Kakeeto for which an acknowledgment of receipt shall be issued to you or in the alternative we will proceed with the cancellation of this title among other legal remedies available,” Kaboggoza wrote,
But Kaggwa engaged another gear and sought the intervention of David Mpanga, who is the Lands minister in Buganda and oversees BLB.
We have been told that Kaggwa claimed the person from whom he bought his portion of the land owned the entire piece of land.
In June this year, Mpanga invited the warring parties for a meeting at Bulange to resolve the issue. We have been told that Rukundo declined to attend the meeting saying BLB had already determined the matter.
She claimed Mpanga was trying to protect Kaggwa.
Complex
Sources told us that part of the reason why the matter has not yet been resolved is that it involves a number of prominent parties with several interests at stake.
First, we have been told that Kaggwa belongs to one of the aristocratic families in Buganda meaning he has some influence.
Secondly, Kaggwa and Mpanga are said to be tight friends.
Third, Rukundo after university worked briefly at Mpanga’s law firm before leaving to start her own firm. The two have a history.
Fourth, as earlier mentioned Rukundo is wife to Kakeeto the MD of Post Bank. Post Bank has supported some Buganda activities like Kabaka’s annual birthday run.
Yet Kakeeto has to tread carefully. As a manager of a government-owned bank, the last thing he would want is for his name to be invoked in a saga that involves billions of shillings.
Apparently, Kakeeto has tried as much as possible to keep his head under the water but sources say his wife’s regular posts on the matter could land him in trouble.
For now, the matter appears deadlocked. Rukundo will not give up neither will Kaggwa back down.
Caught in the middle is Kakeeto and Mpanga. Court, it appears, could be the next destination for the warring parties.
