Africa-Press – Uganda. Nakasongola District leaders have suspended stone quarry activities at Kageri Hill after failing to negotiate a new contract with Energo Uganda Company Ltd, which manages the site.
This came after the district and managers of the company failed to agree on the new terms to renew the latter’s contract to manage the quarry site.
Energo’s contract to manage the site was supposed to be renewed in December 2020, but the district declined, saying they needed to first seek expert advice from the government valuer.
Recently, the government valuer advised that Energo pays the district a revised rate of Shs680m annually for using the site, up from the Shs200m the firm has been remitting to the district since 2011, which the latter protested.
According to Mr Sunday Rogers Bwanga, the district speaker, the council has already passed a resolution suspending Energo activities since the company directors rejected the government valuer’s advice.
“Since the expiry of the contract in 2020, Energo has continued to use the quarry without remitting any money since we had no running contract with them. We had earlier relied on the expert advice from the government valuer where Nakasongola would benefit more from the stone quarry,” Mr Bwanga said on Wednesday.
On May 31, the councillors tasked the chief administrative officer, Mr Charles Uma, to explain the status of the quarry since Energo declined to sign a new contract. Mr Uma said a district team had met the managers of Energo to present the new rates but they rejected them.
“I believe the negotiations will resume if they are still interested in the stone quarry site,” he said.
Mr Rogers Ssemanda, the district youth councillor, had earlier told the council that the company was playing a delaying tactic to exploit Nakasongola resources.
“It was wrong for Energo to continue with the stone quarry activities without a running contract. We cannot sue the company for failure to remit money for the past two years since we have no running contract. They should be immediately suspended from the quarry until a new contract is signed,” he said.
Mr Joseph Atiku, an administrators at the quarry site, told Daily Monitor that the company bosses were still negotiating for a new contract.
“I am sure they will agree on the way forward,” he said.
The district chairperson, Mr Sam Kigula, said they have not had a significant benefit from the quarry.
“This informed our decision to engage the government valuer to ensure that we come to get reasonable bargaining terms with Energo or any other company that could pick interest,” he said.
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