Africa-Press – Uganda. The new councillors of Masaka City threatened to impeach the mayor, Ms Florence Namayanja, over alleged absenteeism and incompetence.
A section of councillors led by Mr Rodgers Buregeya, the Masaka City youth councillor, and other councillors, mainly from ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), claim Ms Namayanja has failed to report to her office ever since she was sworn in on May 18, which has slowed down council work.
“We are giving her [Namayanja] a two-week ultimatum to report to her office and work, lest we impeach her,” Mr Buregeya said during an interview at the weekend.
He said they are lobbying their fellow councillors from the National Unity Platform (NUP) to support their motion. Masaka City has 26 councillors, of whom 24 subscribe to NUP and the other two are NRM.
“We call upon all people of Masaka City to support us on this cause .The Local Government Act is very clear on any person who intentionally refuses to carry out his /her duties,” Mr Buregeya said.
The youth councillor said many city dwellers, who want to see the mayor, go to Ms Namayanja’s office daily but they are unattended to because she doesn’t sit there.
Ms Rosette Nansubuga, a female councillor, said Ms Namayanja has not officially informed the council why she is not in office.
What councillors say“We are planning to use zoom to conduct council business and the impeachment motion is among the major issues on our order paper if she [Namayanja] doesn’t heed to our quest to report to office,” Ms Nansubuga added. For the last one month, Ms Namayanja has been conducting office work from her living room at her home in Kitenga Village, about 7 km away from her office in Masaka City.
This followed reports that the building housing the Masaka City Council chambers and some other offices is being claimed by an army officer, Maj Gen Silver Kayemba, the military attaché at Uganda’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York City.
For the last decade, Gen Kayemba has reportedly been threatening to evict the municipal office (now city offices) but the former Masaka Municipal leadership led by outgoing mayor, Mr Godfrey Kayemba, protested the move, saying the structure is among the departed Asians properties, and the former fraudulently acquired it.
In a telephone interview last week, Ms Namayanja said she decided to work from home as the city clerk finds a suitable office space for her because she doesn’t ‘want to get entangled in a property row with Gen Kayemba.’
“We were served with a notice to vacate the building [city council chambers] and I could not get involved in battles with someone who claims to own the building. I had no option, but to work from home as the council looks for a way of getting office space for me,” Ms Namayanja said.
But the outgoing mayor, Mr Kayemba, dismissed claims by Gen Kayemba that he owns city council chambers and challenged him to provide proof of ownership. The former mayor insists that the building, which houses the city council chambers, is located on Plot 28/30, while Gen Kayemba purportedly owns Plot 26A.
“I have used the office on that building for a decade as the mayor and I was never evicted because I knew council rightfully owns the property. It is shocking that the purported owner is coming up now when I have left office; the Inspector General of Government should investigate this matter,” he said.
The outgoing mayor wondered how the new leadership will transact council business in hotels, saying this will have a significant drain on the new city’s resource envelope.
“I am afraid that they [new city leadership] have started using the Shs1.5 billion we had mobilised for constructing new city council offices, for paying hotel bills where they hold council meetings,” Mr Kayemba said.
“I advise my successor to save the taxpayers’ money and accept to work from the current office premises,” He added. However, when contacted, Gen Kayemba said Masaka City Council are mere tenants of his building.
“They [city council] are there as tenants and they know that,” he said in a short WhatsApp message, without giving details about his ownership .Masaka City Council Clerk John Behangane said his office is working tirelessly to ensure that they secure another office space for the new mayor.
“We are trying to address her [mayor] concern and very soon, she will have a well-furnished office where she can sit,” he said.Ms Namayanja, 61, who is a former MP for Bukoto East Constituency, became the first female Masaka City mayor early this year after defeating seven other contenders.
What law saysAccording to Section 14 (1) of the Local Government Act, a mayor or district chairperson can be removed from office by the council on any of the following grounds, including abuse of office, corruption, incompetence, misconduct or misbehaviour such as physical or mental incapacity as would render him or her incapable of performing the duties.
However, the councillors have to first submit a written notice to the speaker signed by not less than one-third of all the members of the council.
Compiled by Al-Mahdi Ssenkabirwa , Wilson Kutamba &Malik Fahad Jjingo
