Inspector General of Police, Lt. Gen. Kale Kayihura
Kampala – Muslim youth of the Tabliq sect on Friday postponed their move to forcefully remove iron sheets erected around the contested Clock Tower grounds to give negotiations a chance.
Addressing thousands of Muslims who gathered for Juma prayers at Nakasero Mosque, the new Tabliq leader, Sheikh Yunus Kamoga, said the Inspector General of Police, Lt. Gen. Kale Kayihura, had promised to look into their issues to resolve the impasse, something they accepted.
“They (public) have always branded us militants who don’t believe in negotiations but we are doing it this time. We met Gen. Kayihura in the night (Thursday) and we are meeting again on Monday,” he said, adding, “And if nothing comes out of these meetings, we shall have no option but to storm the grounds and pull down the illegally erected fence.”
However, Sheikh Kamoga’s pronouncements seem to have annoyed some radical youth who accused him of betraying their cause to recover the property which were illegally parceled out by their former leaders. About an hour later, a handful of these defiant youth started matching towards the contested grounds.
Ready to defend the grounds
“Come rain or shine we shall remove those iron sheets. Whoever has interest in this land will only take it over our dead bodies,” an unidentified youth charged.
With all this happening, a few Muslims loyal to Sheikh Sulaiman Kakeeto, who is accused of brokering the sale to businessman Hassan Basajjabalaba, were holed up inside the fenced grounds where they erected a temporary tent which currently serves as a mosque.
The twist of events comes days after Tabliqs vowed to storm the Clock Tower grounds and remove the fence erected Mr Basajjabalaba last weekend who reportedly bought the 11-acre piece of land along Queen’s Way.
The now controversial land belongs to the Muslim Tabliq Community. It has an incomplete building which houses the Clock Tower Police Post and a police barracks established in the run-up to last year’s general elections.
Efforts to speak to Mr Basajjabalabala were futile yesterday as his known mobile phones were switched off. But Sheikh Kakeeto, the former Tabliq leader, insists that they entered into a joint venture with Mr Basajjabalaba to redevelop the land to benefit all Muslims.
By Al-mahdi Ssenkabirwa, Daily Monitor
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