City officials on the spot over compensation of properties
Wednesday January 20 2021
About 1,500 families are to be relocated from Bannyahe slum but property owners say the valuation carried out four years ago does not represent the actual value of their propertis. PHOTO | CYRIL NDEGEYA
Kigali City officials have come under scrutiny for disregarding expropriation procedures in the implementation of infrastructure projects that has left some residents without payment long after their properties are taken.
However, Kigali City Council blames the Executive for failing to present valuation reports of all properties demolished during mega upgrade, rehabilitation and maintenance of roads for scrutiny and approval.
They include the 54.56km Kigali Urban Road Upgrading project involving six roads, and three more projects including the maintenance and rehabilitation works on more than 108km road network citywide, all of which had pending compensation payment for properties that were already destroyed.
While the city council does not specify the abuses in the way expropriations were carried out, it indicates similar practices were behind persistent grievances in previous and on-going expropriation projects in public interest across the city.
In an interview with Rwanda Today, acting chairperson of the city council Didas Muganga Kayihura said following procedures would have allowed the council to ascertain that the municipality had the budget to implement the projects, thereby protecting owners from losses caused by delays occurring long after properties are earmarked for expropriation.
The council, in its resolutions of November 18, instructed city management to seek greenlight from the Attorney General before proceeding with payment of pending compensation and archiving cleared files.
“It appeared there was no prior council approval of the valuation report based on which the affected property owners are compensated, and that’s contrary to the law in place since 2015.
That’s why the Ministry of Justice needs to advise on the way forward,” he said, declining to discuss specific details of the projects in question.
However, according to Mr Kayihura, lack of scrutiny to ascertain that the municipality had resources to implement projects prior to approval as being in public interest was to blame for public grievances rocking past and on-going projects in the city.
Among the contested projects are Bannyahe slum relocation involving more than 1,500 families, which is pending as property owners term the valuation carried out four years ago outdated.