Businessman Moses Masagazi, the proprietor of Anglo Ugandan Corporation (AUC) has been grilled by Parliamentary Committee on Natural Resources for evicting Artisanal miners from the mining fields in Bukuya Sub County, Mubende District.
About 70,000 artisanal gold miners in Mubende District were evicted in August last year but they rejected a new site government had given them on suspicion that it may not have gold reserves.
The artisanal Miners led by Kasanda North MP Oshabe Patrick Nsamba and Bukuya County MP Dr. Michael Bukenya were appearing before this committee chaired by Kiboga East MP Dr. Keffa Kiwanuka investigating illegal eviction of the Artisan Miners from the mining fields of Bukuya sub-county who petitioned parliament.
Appearing before the Committee, Masagazi said that the artisanal miners mining gold in Mubende around the area where his company holds a license are doing it illegally without a license.
The artisanal miners claim that Government has frustrated their attempts to legalize their business, but also given away huge chunks of land to investors for exploration yet most of them have mined gold in Mubende for decades.
They want government to at least grant them 1 square Miles out of over 270 square kilometres of exploration area in Mubende that the investor, Gemstones International has acquired.
They also want all people who lost property compensated
