- A motor garage has occupied land of St Andrew’s Cathedral in Mbale since the early 1970s
- More than 25,000 mechanics are to be relocated
- An alternative site of more than 50 acres in Busamaga Forest is being prepared
- The diocese plans to build a Jubilee House on the reclaimed land
The Church of Uganda’s Diocese of Mbale has petitioned the city land board to recover cathedral land occupied by a motor garage for more than 50 years, Daily Monitor reported on May 22, 2025, in a report by Yahudu Kitunzi.
The garage has occupied land belonging to St Andrew’s Cathedral and the diocesan headquarters since the early 1970s. More than 25,000 mechanics are expected to be relocated to an alternative site of more than 50 acres in Busamaga Forest, on the outskirts of Mbale, once the land is degazetted. The target is the end of 2025.
“This issue has dragged on for years, despite efforts involving the State House,” diocesan secretary Rev Canon Eridad Milton Shissa wrote in a May 7, 2025 letter. Chief of Defence Forces General Muhoozi Kainerugaba pledged to intervene during a 2023 visit, and President Museveni has been briefed. The diocese plans to build a Jubilee House on the recovered land.
Recovering the land depends on the government finding and preparing somewhere else for the mechanics to go.
Church land in Jamaica is sometimes occupied by vendors, garages or informal businesses that start small and grow over the years. The longer an occupation lasts, the harder and more political it becomes to reverse. Churches should put any use of their land by others under written, time-limited agreements and review them regularly.
Follow Jamaica Homes on Youtube @jamaicahomes and Instagram @jamaica_homes and on Facebook @jamaicahomesnews Send us a message or email us at onlinefeedback@jamaica-homes.com or editor@jamaica-homes.com
Visit our YouTube Community ↗