Since last week, reports have been making rounds in the media alleging that former Makerere University Vice Chancellor Prof Venansius Baryamureeba connived with outgoing Kampala Woman MP Nabilah Naggayi Sempala to steal her husband’s property.
Its alleged that Nabilah connived with the Uganda Technology And Management University (UTAMU) proprietor to grab Isaac Sempala Ssebagala’s property located in Kyadondo Block 273, Plot 5- Katuso Close, Kampala on grounds that the latter and wife failed to pay a friendly loan of Shs850 million.
Responding to allegations, Prof Baryamureeba has said in 2013,Nabilah approached him as a family friend who asked him to give her and husband a loan so that they could rescue their house which had been out on sale by Equity Bank, Uganda.
He says he talked to Mr. Sempala on Hon. Nabilah’s phone and made it clear to him that they needed to find the money within two weeks otherwise their property would be put on sale again.
“I would provide them with a friendly loan of UGX 450 Million on condition that he writes to Equity Bank (U) Ltd to release the title to his wife Hon. Nabilah once the outstanding loan was cleared and at the same time he signs open ended transfer forms. He did write to Equity Bank on 27th February 2013 and also sent the transfer forms to Hon. Nabilah by courier. So on 1st March 2021, at 23.56pm I did send an email to Equity Bank (U) Ltd informing them that I had given Hon. Nabilah UGX 50 Million and she had deposited it on Equity Bank (U) Ltd Loan account at 5.15pm. This was after Hon. Nabilah on behalf of her family had entered into a loan agreement of UGX 450 Million witnessed by my lawyer and her lawyer with a condition that upon execution of the loan agreement, the borrower hereby acknowledges receipt of the 1st tranche of UGX 50 Million and the 2nd tranche of 400Million would be released upon the discharge of mortgage on LVR 4004 Folio 8 situated in Kyadondo Block 273 Plot 5 Katuso Close at Katuso in Kampala District to me. The friendly loan was for 8 years and the last date of repayment was 1st March 2021,” Prof Baryamureeba said in a statement on Monday.
“Before they could pay any instalment on the above loan of UGX 450 Million they asked me for a 2nd loan of UGX 400 Million to acquire a home in Canada where they had relocated the family. This was after I had announced my plans to run for President of Uganda in May 2015. I demanded that I get details of the property they wanted to acquire and Mr. Sempala on 1st June 2015 provided the details of the property to Hon. Nabilah as a property at EDMONTON A-B T5Y 3B7, 4607-152 AVENUE, CANADA. I asked my lawyer to draft a second loan agreement against the same title in my possession, which agreement was signed on 2nd June 2015 and witnessed by my lawyer and her lawyer. The last date for payment of this loan was also 1st March 2021. Mr. Sempala had already given Nabilah the account details in Canada and she transferred the money to him immediately after receiving it on 2nd June 2015. This brought the loan to UGX 850 Million. The property in Canada is in Mr. Isaac Sempala’s name and is being used as a family home. On 30th January 2020, Hon. Nabilah managed to pay UGX 50 Million leaving the balance at 800 Million.”
Read Prof Baryamureeba’s full statement:
I had hoped that the issues surrounding the property, Leasehold Register Volume 4004 Folio 8 situated in Kyadondo Block 273 Plot 5 Katuso Close at Katuso in Kampala District, would be resolved legally / amicably but since my name (Prof. Venansius Baryamureeba) has been dragged into the public domain through the media, I am compelled to provide answers to the public through the same media.
I came to know Hon. Nabilah Naggayi Sempala in 2005 when she had come to Hon. Bidandi Ssali’s place in Kiwatule as President of Social Democratic Party (SDP) and I was President of National Progressive Movement (NPM) that later turned into Peoples Progressive Party (PPP). She then introduced me to her husband who was a dealer in Kampala. So in 2006, they both approached me and I agreed to provide support to Hon. Naggayi’s parliamentary campaign. As I came to know them better, I discovered that Mr. Sempala had no stable income and was always using the above house to secure loans and at times sell family property to get money. Before 2010, Mr. Ssempala had gotten more than four (4) loans on the above property, some allegedly from his own brother Mr. Farouk Ntegge, which Hon. Nabilah had to clear.
In 2011, Hon. Nabilah’s bid for Kampala woman member parliament cost her a lot of money that she had to get loans after elections from Bank of Africa and Housing Finance (U) Ltd to clear most of the loans she had gotten from money lenders / loan sharks.
Also by 2012, Mr. Sempala had outstanding loans from Equity Bank (U) Ltd, Pesa Finance Ltd and several money lenders / loan sharks and when the money lenders / loan sharks wanted him arrested he escaped from the country and ended up in Kansas City, Missouri in the United States.
On 20th August 2010, Mr. Sempala signed a mortgagor’s approval and consent drawn by M/s Tibeingana and Co. Advocates in favour of Equity Bank (U) Ltd to sell the above property if he defaulted. In February 2013, Equity Bank (U) Ltd through Sekabanja and Co. Advocates advertised the property, Leasehold Register Volume 4004 Folio 8 situated in Kyadondo Block 273 Plot 5 Katuso Close at Katuso in Kampala District, in print media to recover the loan for which Mr. Sempala had defaulted.
Hon. Nabilah approached me as a family friend to intervene and save their property and I caused a meeting on 13th February 2013 with Equity Bank (U) Ltd management. At this meeting, the Equity Bank (U) Ltd management agreed to pause the sell by two weeks within which Mr. Sempala and Hon. Nabilah should have gotten the money and repaid the loan and other associated costs since the bank had already engaged a firm to sale the property. Immediately after the meeting, I talked to Mr. Sempala on Hon. Nabilah’s phone and made it clear to him that they needed to find the money within two weeks otherwise their property would be put on sell again.
By 26th February 2013, they had not gotten the money and I received an email from a one Ms. Sandra Mbabali, the then Head of Consumer Credit , Equity Bank (U) Ltd reminding me and Hon. Nabilah that the sale of the property had been exceptionally halted to enable Hon. Nabilah and Mr. Sempala redeem the property despite the many bids they had received. I did respond to her email on the same day but at the same time I asked Hon. Nabilah to arrange a phone call with her husband who was in the United States and when we talked on Hon. Nabilah’s phone, I made it clear to him that since they had failed to raise the money and two of their properties were up for sale by Equity bank (U) Ltd and Pesa Finance Ltd, I would provide them with a friendly loan of UGX 450 Million on condition that he writes to Equity Bank (U) Ltd to release the title to his wife Hon. Nabilah once the outstanding loan was cleared and at the same time he signs open ended transfer forms. He did write to Equity Bank on 27th February 2013 and also sent the transfer forms to Hon. Nabilah by courier. So on 1st March 2021, at 23.56pm I did send an email to Equity Bank (U) Ltd informing them that I had given Hon. Nabilah UGX 50 Million and she had deposited it on Equity Bank (U) Ltd Loan account at 5.15pm. This was after Hon. Nabilah on behalf of her family had entered into a loan agreement of UGX 450 Million witnessed by my lawyer and her lawyer with a condition that upon execution of the loan agreement, the borrower hereby acknowledges receipt of the 1st tranche of UGX 50 Million and the 2nd tranche of 400Million would be released upon the discharge of mortgage on LVR 4004 Folio 8 situated in Kyadondo Block 273 Plot 5 Katuso Close at Katuso in Kampala District to me. The friendly loan was for 8 years and the last date of repayment was 1st March 2021.
Before they could pay any instalment on the above loan of UGX 450 Million they asked me for a 2nd loan of UGX 400 Million to acquire a home in Canada where they had relocated the family. This was after I had announced my plans to run for President of Uganda in May 2015. I demanded that I get details of the property they wanted to acquire and Mr. Sempala on 1st June 2015 provided the details of the property to Hon. Nabilah as a property at EDMONTON A-B T5Y 3B7, 4607-152 AVENUE, CANADA. I asked my lawyer to draft a second loan agreement against the same title in my possession, which agreement was signed on 2nd June 2015 and witnessed by my lawyer and her lawyer. The last date for payment of this loan was also 1st March 2021. Mr. Sempala had already given Nabilah the account details in Canada and she transferred the money to him immediately after receiving it on 2nd June 2015. This brought the loan to UGX 850 Million. The property in Canada is in Mr. Isaac Sempala’s name and is being used as a family home. On 30th January 2020, Hon. Nabilah managed to pay UGX 50 Million leaving the balance at 800 Million.
Mr. Sempala, a Canadian citizen, came to Uganda and got a national ID, registered as a voter without applying for duo citizenship. He illegally voted on 14th January 2021 for Presidential and Parliamentary elections. For him committing fraud and defrauding people of their money is the order of the day. When Mr. Sempala returned to Uganda in October 2020 for the burial of his late brother Haj. Ntege Ssebagala, he secretly put a caveat on the property without my notice in November 2020. When Hon. Nabilah lost the Kampala City mayoral race, their chances of redeeming the property dwindled since he (Mr. Sempala) is just a dealer without any source of income. Instead of him and Hon. Nabilah approaching me and negotiating new terms, he has been misadvised to claim that he is not party to the loans. I have all the evidence and I have instructed my lawyers to proceed as per the loan agreements which provided for ‘’ failure to pay the loans by 1st March 2021, the lender shall possess the property and evict any occupants therein or dispose of the same in order to recover the amount due.
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