BEFORE THE HONORABLE MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSION OF THE EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES COMMISSION SITTING AT MASAKA DECISION OF THE COMMISSION.
This is a decision arising from a complaint brought under Section 23 of The Equal Opportunities Commission Act, 2007 for orders that; a) The Respondent gives vacant possession of the land belonging to the Complainant and his siblings. b) The Commission awards General damages The Complainant is a resident of Kasambya Kinoni, Kiseka in Lwengo District and one of the children of late Nalule Mary.
The Respondent is a maternal uncle of the Complainant.
The gist of the Complainant’s case is that the Respondent did not afford him and his other siblings an opportunity to inherit their late mother’s land upon her passing, on the ground that according to their custom, no person is allowed to inherit property from the maternal side. To the Complainant, the Respondent’s action amounted to discrimination, and violation of their rights to own property contrary to Article 26 of the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, 1995.
By the time of hearing the complaint on 21st June 2016, at Masaka District Headquarters-Lukiiko Hall, the Respondent had not filed a reply to this complaint as required under Regulation 9(2) of the E.O.C. Regulations, 2014. He also did not attend the Commission hearing despite being validly served with summons. The Respondent when contacted on phone by the Commission’s Investigation Officer, Mr. Savio Kakooza, stated that he was not attending the hearing as it did not mean anything to him.