The National Social Security Fund (NSSF) has stepped up efforts to take full possession of its contested Temangalo land in Wakiso District, announcing that it has begun legal proceedings to enforce an earlier land-swap arrangement and secure possession of acreage still occupied by businessman Amos Nzeyi.
In a statement issued on August 14, 2026, NSSF said it had initiated further action before the High Court to enforce the terms of the land-swap arrangement and seek the eviction of Nzeyi from approximately 55 acres that the Fund says form part of the 463.87 acres it purchased in 2008.
The move marks a fresh escalation in one of Uganda’s longest-running land disputes involving a major public institution and a prominent businessman.
NSSF said the action followed the expiry of an ultimatum it issued to Nzeyi in June 2026, requiring him to provide suitable alternative land by June 30, failing which the Fund would take steps to enforce its rights and obtain possession of the disputed property.
The Fund maintains that the land is legally registered in its name and that it is entitled to full possession of the property.
The 2008 Temangalo deal
The dispute dates back to 2008 when NSSF purchased 463.87 acres of land in Temangalo from Arma Limited and Amos Nzeyi.
According to NSSF, the land was transferred through six separate certificates of title, all of which are registered in the Fund’s name.
The acquisition subsequently became one of the most controversial property transactions involving a Ugandan public institution, attracting scrutiny from Parliament and later the Commission of Inquiry into Land Matters.
NSSF has consistently maintained that it acquired the land for investment and development purposes. The Fund’s current Temangalo project is planned as a large mixed-use affordable housing development.
NSSF’s official project information says the Temangalo Affordable Housing Project covers 463.87 acres and is intended to eventually provide about 3,500 residential units, together with retail and commercial facilities, schools, healthcare and social amenities, roads, electricity, water and sewage infrastructure.
However, from the beginning, part of the land transaction was accompanied by a separate understanding between NSSF and Nzeyi concerning land on which Nzeyi had a farmhouse, paddocks and related developments.
The 104.88-acre arrangement
At the time the purchase agreement was executed in 2008, NSSF and Nzeyi entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).
Under the arrangement, Nzeyi was allowed to retain 104.88 acres containing his farmhouse, paddocks and other developments.
In return, Nzeyi was expected to provide NSSF with suitable alternative land within six months.
That arrangement was intended to resolve the practical problem of NSSF acquiring the larger property while allowing Nzeyi to relocate his existing developments to another suitable parcel.
According to NSSF, however, the alternative land provided by Nzeyi did not meet the requirements contained in the MOU.
The Fund says Nzeyi subsequently resisted its efforts to take possession of the remaining acreage, resulting in a dispute that has continued for years.
The dispute was therefore not simply about ownership of the broader Temangalo property. It became a question of whether Nzeyi had complied with the agreed terms for replacing the portion of land he was temporarily allowed to retain.
Attempts to settle the dispute
NSSF says the parties made several attempts to resolve the matter without prolonged litigation.
In October 2011, the Fund and Nzeyi attempted to reach a new compromise.
Under that proposal, Nzeyi would cede 50 acres and reduce the land he retained to 54.88 acres. In return, he undertook to provide NSSF with 64.5 acres of alternative land.
The position was rejected by the Minister, according to NSSF’s account.
With the disagreement unresolved, NSSF and Nzeyi agreed in February 2013 to refer the dispute to arbitration.
The arbitration process subsequently produced an award that, according to the Fund, upheld the terms of the original MOU as well as the position that had been negotiated between the parties.
The settlement contemplated a land swap involving equal and suitable alternative land located adjacent to the land already under NSSF’s possession.
The replacement land was intended to be suitable for NSSF’s planned housing development and free of squatters.
But even after the arbitration award, the dispute did not end.
Alternative land repeatedly rejected
NSSF says that from 2013 onwards, Nzeyi proposed alternative parcels of land for the swap.
The Fund commissioned two independent valuations and assessments of the suitability of the alternative land.
According to NSSF, neither assessment found sufficient suitable land to satisfy the agreed requirements.
The Fund says the only suitable land identified for the proposed swap amounted to approximately 10 acres—far short of what was required to resolve the dispute.
This left NSSF facing a situation in which it held titles to the wider property but did not have full physical possession of land that had remained under Nzeyi’s occupation.
The dispute became particularly significant as NSSF moved to develop the Temangalo property.
NSSF issues ultimatum
With the alternative-land arrangement still unresolved, NSSF escalated the matter in June 2026.
The Fund issued Nzeyi an ultimatum requiring him to provide suitable alternative land by June 30, 2026.
The warning was explicit: failure to comply would lead NSSF to take legal steps to enforce its rights and obtain possession of the land.
The deadline passed without the dispute being resolved.
NSSF has now confirmed that it has moved to the next stage—seeking enforcement through the High Court.
The Fund says it is pursuing execution of the land-swap terms and seeking an order for Nzeyi’s eviction from approximately 55 acres forming part of the land it purchased in 2008 and subsequently registered in its name.
The move effectively brings the decades-old dispute back into the courtroom, this time with NSSF seeking to translate its claimed legal ownership and the earlier arbitration outcome into actual physical possession.
Parliament has already reopened scrutiny
NSSF’s latest action comes against the backdrop of renewed parliamentary scrutiny of the Temangalo property.
In July 2026, the Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) questioned NSSF officials over the continued occupation of part of the land.
NSSF Managing Director Patrick Ayota told MPs that the Fund had issued an eviction notice to Nzeyi over the land he occupies with a house and farm.
Ayota explained that the Fund had been unable to accept the alternative parcels offered by Nzeyi because they did not satisfy the conditions attached to the land swap.
He said the replacement land was required to be adjacent to NSSF’s existing property, suitable for the Fund’s development plans and free of squatters.
Parliament subsequently dispatched police officers to inspect the property and establish the status of the disputed portion, including documenting what was physically on the land.
The parliamentary inquiry has also raised questions about how the original transaction and subsequent land-swap arrangement were handled.
Some MPs have demanded accountability from officials who were involved in the original deal, arguing that the fact that the transaction occurred years before the current NSSF management does not remove the Fund’s present responsibility to protect its assets.
A long-running and politically sensitive land saga
The Temangalo controversy has a much longer history than the current dispute between NSSF and Nzeyi.
The original purchase attracted parliamentary attention after questions were raised about the acreage acquired, the ownership history of portions of the land and the circumstances under which the transaction was approved.
In 2018, NSSF told the Commission of Inquiry into Land Matters that it had purchased 463.87 acres in Temangalo for approximately Shs11 billion. The Fund maintained that it possessed certificates of title for the property.
The land also became the subject of a separate legal dispute involving Temangalo Tea Estates Limited, which claimed an interest in approximately 366 acres.
That case was dismissed by the High Court in 2019 on limitation grounds, with the court finding that the claim had been brought too late.
The separate litigation and investigations added to the controversy surrounding a property that NSSF now intends to transform into one of its major housing investments.
Court action comes as housing project advances
For NSSF, securing full possession is increasingly important because the Fund has positioned Temangalo as a major real-estate investment.
The Fund’s current plans envisage approximately 3,500 homes on the 463.87-acre site, alongside commercial and community facilities. Phase One comprises 550 units—200 bungalows, 100 townhouses, 50 villas and 200 apartments.
The project is therefore not merely a landholding for NSSF. It forms part of the Fund’s broader strategy of investing members’ savings in real estate while providing housing and generating returns.
During the July parliamentary engagement, Ayota indicated that the Fund was pushing ahead with development plans for the site and expected thousands of homes to be developed.
The continued occupation of part of the property consequently presents both a legal and development challenge for the Fund.
NSSF: We are protecting members’ assets
In its August 14 statement, NSSF sought to frame the latest legal action as part of its responsibility to protect members’ savings and investment assets.
The Fund said it remains committed to vigorously protecting the interests of its members as well as its ownership rights and possession of the Temangalo property.
The Fund’s position is that the matter has remained unresolved not because ownership of the land is uncertain, but because the separate arrangement allowing Nzeyi to retain part of the property was never successfully implemented through an acceptable land swap.
NSSF now wants the High Court to enforce the agreed terms and allow it to take possession of the disputed acreage.
The dispute therefore enters a potentially decisive phase.
For Nzeyi, the issue is the continued occupation of land where he has maintained a home and farming-related activities. For NSSF, the issue is the recovery of physical control of an asset whose titles it says have been in its name since the 2008 transaction.
The outcome could determine whether the Fund finally gains uninterrupted possession of the entire Temangalo property and clears the way for development of the large-scale housing project.
After more than a decade of negotiations, arbitration, failed attempts at a land swap, parliamentary scrutiny and repeated legal proceedings, NSSF is now betting on court enforcement to bring the Temangalo land dispute closer to an end.
The Fund’s latest statement makes clear that it is no longer relying on further negotiations alone. With its June 30 deadline expired, NSSF has opted to pursue the legal route to obtain what it describes as its rightful and full possession of the land acquired for the benefit of its members.
