In her address, the Superior General of the Good Samaritan Sisters, Sr. John Evangelist Mugisha decried the rampant land grabbing actions which she said has kept nuns running the Good Samaritans Health Centre III Takajjunge – Mukono on tension following incessant threats from the land grabbers.
The Prime Minister of Uganda, Robinah Nabbanja on Sunday contributed sh30m during the fundraising of sh1.3bn meant for the construction of a modern maternity ward at Good Samaritan Sisters Health Centre III.
Nabbanja’s money was delivered by the Minister of State for Higher Education, Dr. John Chrysostom Muyingo. The Minister together with his wife, Rose Muyingo, also contributed sh10m for the same cause.
Good Samaritan Sisters Health Centre III is located at Takajjunge in Nama sub-county, Mukono district. The fundraising function was graced by a mass led by the Dean of Mukono Deanery, Fr. Paul Ssebitoogo in the company of Fr. Gyaviira Kimuli, the parish priest of Kasangalabi parish.
In her address, the Superior General of the Good Samaritan Sisters, Sr. John Evangelist Mugisha decried the rampant land grabbing actions which she said has kept nuns running the Good Samaritans Health Centre III Takajjunge – Mukono on tension following incessant threats from the land grabbers.
Sr. Mugisha was sad to note that Uganda, known as the Pearl of Africa, has now become more popular in the international community owing to land grabbing incidents which have on many occasions resulted in loss of human life and property.
The visibly angry nun petitioned President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni to immediately step in and bring to a conclusive end the perennial threats they have been subjected to by land grabbers.
She added that they now live in fear and unrest owing to the threats and actual cases of land grabbing.
There is a record of incidents of where encroachers have destroyed the nun’s property including food crops, with some claiming ownership of chunks of the land where the sisters’ health unit, farm and nunnery are located, and there are a number of cases pending court resolve.
In response, Dr. Muyingo condemned people disorganizing the nuns and trying to divert them from their humanitarian service and promised to personally spearhead the battle to bring an end to these people’s criminal activities.
He invoked good spirited Ugandans to curse in the strongest of terms people behind the sisters’ woes, noting that whoever disturbs faith based organisations doing humanitarian work is indirectly attacking the government because he said, these organisations are complementing government responsibilities.
On poverty in communities, Muyingo blamed people including the nuns, who shun accessing government poverty reduction prevalence interventions, and reminded them that there is the GROW programme for women in business, which he said is not limited to a specific category of people.
Earlier, the Ssekiboobo, Mengo chief for Kyaggwe County, Vincent Matovu Bintubizibu echoed Sr. Mugisha’s words, saying that Kyaggwe, with the biggest chunk of the Kabaka’s land in Buganda, measuring over 150 square miles, is the biggest victim for land grabbing in the region.
Matovu advised farmers in Buganda to plant coffee or trees on all vacant land as a way of keeping away land grabbers who he said more easily target free land than that under crop cover.
Also present at the function was the Director for St. Francis Nurses and Midwives Training Institute Namataba, Dr. Peter Bbosa Kiwanuka supported the construction work by donating five million shillings.
Rev. Sr. Mary Josephine Mbabazi, the in charge of the health centre, reported that it was begun in 1992 by the late Cardinal Emmanuel Nsubuga Kiwanuka to help upgrade maternal and child health in the area which she said, was in a deplorable state.
Sr. Mbabazi said the new maternity wing under construction is to accommodate a labour ward, private and public wings of the ward, and ante-natal and children’s ward with a special wing for premature births.
There will also be wings for patients who come while needing life support services, a pharmacy and emergency care rooms.
A total of shs53m in cash and sh6m in pledges was realized. Among prominent contributors was Mukono Chief Administrative Officer, Elizabeth Namanda who donated sh500,000, a team of medical doctors led by Dr. Godfrey Kasirye who contributed sh2m, Fr. Paul Ssebitoogo, the dean of Mukono deanery and Fr. Gyaviira Kimuli who contributed sh1.28m, Mary Asumpta Gidudu, the head of Catholic Women’s Guild in Uganda who donated sh500,000, Mukono district NRM chairman Godfrey Ssekaggya who contributed five bags of cement, among others.
In his sermon, the Dean Mukono deanery, Fr. Ssebitoogo outlined the importance of the health unit as far as giving accountability to God is concerned, saying, “as we help the sick to get well, we are also preparing what we shall present to God when we are demanded of our accomplishments in life”.
He appealed to people to endeavour to be good to fellow humans, so that before God, they will have courage to stand and answer questions as to what they did while on earth.
According to Sr. Mbabazi, Good Samaritan Sisters Health Centre III Takajjunge poses over 32 acres of land though over six acres are being encroached on by alleged land grabbers.
