Debate heats up over relocating Luzira Prison to make way for luxury hotel

On April 24, Gen. David Muhoozi, the Minister of State for Internal Affairs, pointed out that the prison, built in the 1920s, is in bad shape and overcrowded, housing 8,790 inmates and 2,653 staff.

Muhoozi laid out three potential solutions: first, renovate and expand the current facilities for about Shs400 billion; second, move the prison at the government's expense but keep the Luzira land for different uses; third, completely relocate the prison at a cost of Shs934 billion, funded by the developer, to ensure better management of inmates.

Many MPs voiced their concerns about these options.

Asuman Basalirwa expressed doubt, saying the prison move might be a cover for a land grab, noting that the Tian Tang Group, the company wanting to build the hotel, has a bad reputation and is in debt.

Elijah Okupa questioned why a hotel would need all of the 260 acres of the site.

Eric Musana argued against moving Luzira Prison, suggesting the land should remain dedicated to the prison.

Jane Avur suggested building the hotel in Pakwach instead, pointing out the tourism potential there due to its large body of water.

Loy Katali was concerned about giving away valuable land for free, suggesting that if necessary, only part of the land should be sold to fund prison reconstruction on the same site.

Juliet Kinyamatama and Fredrick Angura debated the integrity of the relocation proposal.

Kinyamatama called it a scam, while Angura supported the move, noting that correctional facilities typically aren't in city centers anymore because of urban growth.

Jonathan Odur stressed the need for a formal motion to properly debate the Luzira Prison relocation, as just talking about it seemed to endorse the idea.

Speaker Anita Among confirmed that relocating the prisons was an Executive order but agreed with Odur that a formal motion was necessary to assert that the prison land should remain under prison authority.

The Leader of Opposition, Joel Ssenyonyi, highlighted past instances where land was given away without subsequent development, pointing out the lack of trust as a major issue.

He suggested that without trust, even good ideas are hard to sell.

This content was created with the help of an AI model and verified by the writer