Africa-Press – Uganda. The acting chairman of the Kampala City Traders Association (KACITA), Issa Sekito, has welcomed the ongoing eviction of street vendors from the city centre, describing the enforcement as a turning point in restoring order and sanity in Kampala.
Last week, authorities moved to implement a directive by the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) ordering street vendors, boda boda riders without designated stages, and taxis operating illegally to vacate the central business district.
By Thursday morning, Kampala’s usually bustling streets and building verandas appeared unusually deserted. Many of the previously congested walkways were clear, allowing pedestrians to move freely.
Appearing on Sanyuka Television on Monday, Sekito said the enforcement has given the city “a new breath.”
“One doesn’t need expertise to compare how the city is looking now and how it was before. The city without street vendors is sanity. People can now move freely, enter markets and shops easily and, most importantly, it is safer,” Sekito said.
He revealed that traders operating in arcades have already begun expressing appreciation for the renewed order.
“We have started receiving calls in the arcades from those appreciating the new arrangement,” he added.
Sekito also framed the development as a public health and environmental matter.
“When a city is overcrowded, it doesn’t breathe. The city needs to be organic. The trees and flowers can now breathe well unlike before when they were suffocated,” he noted.
His remarks echo sentiments from a section of Ugandans who argue that transforming Kampala into a more organised and accessible city requires firm enforcement of regulations.
However, the exercise has also sparked concern among some members of the public over the livelihoods of the evicted vendors, many of whom have been relying on street trade as their primary source of income.
KCCA has advised affected vendors to relocate to designated markets, insisting that the move is aimed at streamlining business operations, improving sanitation, and enhancing safety within the city centre.
