Africa-Press – Uganda. Some members of the outgoing leadership of city markets have said they will not vacate the markets as more tasks await them.
The secretary of the defunct Nakasero Market Management Committee, Mr Haruna Ntambozi, told this publication yesterday that the interim leadership that was recently disbanded, still has a role to play in promoting the welfare of vendors and traders.
“We are not leaving the markets. The only thing we are not going to do is to collect money from vendors, but we shall continue running government programmes like the Saccos and Emyooga,’’ Mr Ntambozi said.
Emyooga is a presidential initiative on wealth and job creation that was launched in 2019 to complement the government strategy aimed to transform 68 percent of the homesteads from subsistence to market-oriented production.
Mr Ntambozi said, according to the presidential directive, the vendors’ committees should not involved in the administration of the markets.
“Let the vendors stay in office to execute government programmes. They didn’t say we should move out,” he said.
Mr Ntambozi also claimed that they were doing their work diligently and that the presidential directive to disband their leadership could have been triggered by some politicians who misguide the technocrats.
“There is an invisible hand of mafias. We have not been facing managerial challenges. We hope that the mafias do not hide behind the KCCA staff for personal gain,” he said.
The outgoing chairperson of St Balikuddembe Market (Owino), Ms Sudan Kushaba, said she chairs a Women Vendors’ Association within the market and that she would continue executing her duties.
“We have a sacco and an association of women vendors with a membership of 20,000 people. We shall continue serving them,” she said.
Ms Kushaba said whereas the work has been going on well, she accused some politicians of pressuring her to give them free money. She was, however, tight-lipped on naming them.
She added that she would play an oversight role to ensure the presidential directive is implemented.
“I commended the President for granting me the opportunity to manage the market for two years,’’ Ms Kushaba said.
Mr Sulaiman Kakembo, the chairperson of Nakawa Market Vendors Association, is worried that the quality of services rendered will be compromised when the markets are managed by the government.
“In our market here, we have a toilet which is paid for. The sanitation is good, but the hygiene of the public toilet in the same market is very poor. That aside, we have to abide by the directive because we are part of the government,’’ Mr Kakembo said. The chairperson of Nakawa Market, Mr Joseph Mudasi, said he would continue serving vendors, saying his office buiding was constructed by them.
“We shall be mainly dealing with welfare and giving them support,” he added.
President Museveni disbanded the leadership of city public markets and ordered an immediate takeover by Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA). The outgoing leadership was expected to submit their handover reports by yesterday.
They are also expected to meet the KCCA Executive Director, Ms Dorothy Kisaka, today.
The 16 markets
The sixteen markets being taken over are St Balikuddembe (Owino) Market, Nakasero, Kisekka, Usafi, Kamwokya, Bukoto, Busega Market, Namuwongo1, Namuwongo II Nakawa, Nateete, Kasubi, Luzira, Kiswa, Kinawataka, and Bugolobi.
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