Gatsby Industrial Park Tenants in Mbarara Want Lease of Land Blocked

The Mbarara Gatsby Industrial Park Tenants have rushed to High Court seeking a Judicial review on how Uganda Investments Authority-UIA leased out the Industrial Park Land.

They are also seeking an interim order restraining UIA from subleasing the industrial park Land to Mbarara Gatsby Club, a consortium of small-scale entrepreneurs in Mbarara City. The land in question measures 13 acres. 

The eight tenants are Millionstars Health Products Limited, Whitesky 256-SMC limited, Bold Energy Limited, Premium Paints and Chemical Products Limited, Esperenza Distributors limited, Active Living Uganda Limited, Bontao (U) limited, and Agribusiness and Real Estate Investments. 

Last year, the UIA Director-General Robert Mukiiza handed over the industrial park to Mbarara Gatsby Small Scale Enterprise Association Limited. 

The tenants have since refused to pay rent of 120,000 Shillings and outfield maintenance fee of 70,000 Shillings per month.

Through their lawyer David Kamukama, Mbarara Gatsby Industrial Park Tenants argue that they are sitting tenants on the land for more than 10 years and should be given priority to sublease and lease the land.

They also say that the Mbarara Gatsby Small Scale Enterprises Association has issued letters threatening to evict them from the land.

They also argue that being manufacturers and having industrial production machinery producing different products the park should not give away to non-manufacturers/industrialists.

Charles Lwanga Malingu, the Secretary of Mbarara Gatsby Small Scale Enterprise Association Limited says the company bought the land at 77 Million Shillings after acquiring a loan from the East African Development Bank. 

However, when they failed to clear the debt, the Uganda Investment Authority intervened and cleared the debt.  

The petition was filed before the Deputy Registrar of Mbarara High Court Samuel Twakyire. He said that case will be allocated to Justice Joyce Kavuma the Resident Judge Mbarara High Court.  He adds that they are yet to find a day when the petition will be heard.