Gen Saleh denies owning ‘half of Kampala’

President Yoweri Museveni’s brother, Gen Caleb Akandwanaho, aka Salim Saleh, has denied owning ‘half of Kampala’ city, instead calling for a candid national debate on Uganda’s land question.

According to Saleh, Uganda’s land is a deeply distorted and contentious issue affecting the country’s economic development. Saleh, who chairs the Uganda Development Forum (UDF), said land remains the most important factor of production, yet it is the most misunderstood and mismanaged.

“When we were sent to the field under Operation Wealth Creation (OWC), we found land to be the most distorted factor of production,” Saleh said while addressing the Fourth Uganda Development Forum in Kampala.

The forum, held under the theme “Sustaining Musevenomics: Navigating Uganda’s Economic Future in a Disrupted World”, featured Saleh’s virtual presentation from his tactical base in Gulu, where he has been based for years “to avoid the confusion in Kampala.”

Saleh’s address was informed by technical input from experts, including Amanda Ngabirano, chairperson of the Physical Planning Board. He stressed the need for a proper understanding of Uganda’s land use balance sheet.

“Because land is a factor of production,” he emphasized, “Amanda is asking: do we really understand what to do with land to be able to feed our people by 2040, when we shall be 40 million people?” Saleh warned that distorted land ownership and use disrupt other sectors of the economy.

He revealed that he is currently fundraising to conduct a study on land ownership in Kampala.

“Everybody thinks I own half of Kampala,” he joked. “I think I own a maximum of two acres.” The general also referenced past scrutiny by the Internal Security Organisation (ISO), saying he was well-prepared with answers due to earlier studies conducted on Namunkekera land in Kapeeka.

Saleh owns the Namunkekera–Liao Shen Industrial Park in Kapeeka, which hosts multiple industries.

“We know the stimuli that were used to resurrect the economy, security, privatization, liberalization, return of Asian properties, and so on. But I want this conference to focus on land as a factor of production, and to examine these distortions,” he urged.

He noted that land conflicts are not limited to Buganda but are increasingly affecting northern Uganda as well specifically the ongoing tension over the eviction of balaalo (nomadic herders) from the north.

“In northern Uganda, the issue is land—the conflict between the Acholi and the balalo, or what we call migrant cattle keepers, is about land,” Saleh said.

Struggles of Operation Wealth Creation

Reflecting on his mission to uplift Uganda’s “moneyless people” through OWC over the past ten years, Saleh admitted it has been an uphill task.

“We were told to go and look for people who have never touched money,” he said, referencing the program’s early struggles distributing agricultural inputs like coffee and tea seedlings.

“Statistically, they say we were able to reduce the population outside the money economy from 68% to about 39%,” he noted.

Working Mao and DP

Saleh also addressed recent debate within the Democratic Party (DP) after reports emerged that DP chairman Norbert Mao had invited him to speak at the party’s upcoming delegates’ conference.

Some DP supporters have reportedly expressed discomfort over his involvement. In response, Saleh reminded the public that DP members formed a significant portion of President Museveni’s first cabinet in 1986.

“Sixty per cent of the ministers were from DP. I’ve been arguing with Chairman Mao about what caused the divorce,” Saleh recalled.

“It happened in 1996 when I was in Gulu. I think Mao caused the divorce, he was like fire back then.” He expressed regret over the NRM’s eventual separation from DP leaders with whom they had worked closely.

“And during those ten years of cooperation, Uganda was registering double-digit economic growth. But after the fragmentation, we encountered a lot of issues,” he said. He praised Mao for his current role in the Uganda Development Forum, describing him as his “vice-chairperson in think-tanking.”

“We are doing very good work. So I wish him well at his delegates’ conference,” Saleh added. The NRM and DP signed a cooperation agreement in 2022. Critics have argued that the arrangement primarily benefits Mao and a small circle within DP.

The Uganda Development Forum is Saleh’s brainchild and includes several experts such as former intelligence chief David Pulkol and Dr Philip Idro.

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