IGANGA, UGANDA: Leadership in Iganga Municipality convened on Friday to prepare Iganga market vendors and lock-up owners for a multi-billion Market which is to be constructed by government of Uganda. Iganga modern Market to be constructed is among the Markets which were included in the national budget to take shape.
However, the market which is estimated to cost government 20 billion Uganda shillings has allegedly faced repulsive forces from some Leaders who are accused of writing to the local government Ministry quoting that the said Market Land has incumbrances yet government proceeds with a project on a land free from any misunderstanding. One of the quoted incumbrances was renewal of leases to people with lock-ups on the market Land which the municipality authorities led by Town Clerk Iganga municipal council, Ayub Alikwani Kisubi have since refuted.
The meeting which was convened by Iganga Municipality Member of Parliament Hon Mugema Peter alias Panadol and other MPs in Iganga district, attracted Market leadership and vendors, lock-up owners, both incumbent and former leaders at the Municipality and district level, among others. It took place at Iganga Municipality headquarters.
Hon Mugema assured vendors and other Leaders that the market will be constructed since they are reaching an agreement with lock-up owners who will be given holiday during Market construction and resume with their leases after the construction. He said that no one will be affected in the fourth coming Market project.
”If you have a lock-up on the market land, we shall make an agreement with you and stop that lease during the period of market construction. Even if it takes three years under construction, we shall agree and start the leases after Modern Market construction and you will go back to your lock-ups”, Mugema assured lock-up owners.
He added that commissioners and Ministers from local government Ministry were expected in the meeting but later advised them to engage market vendors and reach a conclusion before they can reach the group. ”The commissioners and Ministers were meant to visit us today but they advised us as leaders to first meet vendors and lock-up owners, we reach a conclusive agreement with them before they can come”, Hon Mugema narrated in the meeting. He however urged whoever has any concern to visit office of the Town Clerk Iganga Municipal Council.
Resident District Commissioner Iganga, Deborah Mwesigwa Mugerwa advised leaders to speak one language of development since it’s the key in almost all manifestos which they all use during campaigns. Urged them to avoid fights amongst themselves.
”I want to appreciate you the leaders who have fought to see that the market is in final stages but I urge you to embrace development since it’s what most of you promise voters during campaigns, you should avoid fighting one another on the cost of development for your people”, RDC Mwesigwa appealed.
Former Mayors Iganga Municipality, Hajji Sirajji Katono, and Pastor Balaba David, who attended the meeting pledged to continue supporting the leadership of the new Mayor Bamu Lulenzi, such that he can do exceedingly in terms of development and surpass their regimes.
”I and my colleague Balaba, we are going to continue helping you and guiding you for the development of our town. We don’t want issues of rating which regime worked most and which regime didn’t work, we want to help you and do bigger thing which we didn’t even do during our regimes”, Hajji Katono pledged.
However, the Mayor Iganga municipal council Bamu Lulenzi said that the construction of the market calls for Unity and not political divisions in terms of political parties. He said that he belongs to National Unity Platform [NUP] but when time calls for development, he first hide NUP behind and engages his fellow leaders for project success.
”I belong to NUP but when we went to Kampala to demand for our market, I hid the NUP behind and we presented our issues as one team”, Lulenzi said. He also promised the vendors to be involved in market design since the market belongs to them.
The Speaker Iganga Central division, Paul Muwereza who was pointed at during the meeting as the one leading others to write letters intended to block construction of the Market surprised the meeting when he said that he wasn’t against construction of the Market but was concerned with theft by civil servants at the Municipality whom he said that they steal and burden people with exorbitant taxes on Houses.
”This issue doesn’t concerns me and when my time comes I will also call you or you will get to know. I’m not against market construction but I’m against theft by civil servants who steal in the morning, in the afternoon and in the evening”, Muwereza boldly said adding that some people are charged for house tax totaling to 2 millions claiming that the council passed it which is not the case.
”You’re charging people exorbitantly on house taxes like 2 millions disguising that council passed it which is not the case, you sometime claim that it’s for collecting garbage but let me tell you that these are thieves because we have over 200 millions for garbage collection but not part of the money being charged from innocent people. When these people are dismissed from their jobs, you prepare to face them in highway robbery because they are developed in this bad habit”, Muwereza added, before the area MP Mugema Panadol withdrew the microphone from him and said it was another topic which needed a different day to solve as Leaders.
The Chairperson of the Market, Elvis Tanaziraba also assured lock-up owners that they will make agreements for those with ongoing leases such that they are halted and will resume after market construction. He said cannot connive with the technical team to sell off lock-ups and people’s stalls in the Market.
”I cannot connive with technical team and you know very well that I’m transparent and cannot involve in such dubious acts, we are going to make agreements with all those with lock-ups to halt the leases as Market construction takes shape and the leases will commence after the construction”, Tanaziraba said. ”All vendors inside the Market are ready and we are only concerned with lock-up people with whom we should reach an agreement”, Tanaziraba added.
Some of the vendors in the market welcomed the project and commended Leaders for coming together in chasing the market project.
Aidha Namulondo requested the modern market to be constructed where the old one is located, opposing the suggestions of others leaders to shift the project to another government land in case lock-up owners fails to reach a consensus with Municipality leadership.
”Let the market be constructed where we are operating from because it’s our home place decades ago”, Namulondo said.
Another vendor, Batoole Aisha, also the Market vice-chairperson urged people in lock-ups to agree and let the construction of the Market go on.
”We are grateful for our leaders coming together for this matter, we, therefore, call upon those in lock-ups to reach an agreement with the technical team since vendors with stalls inside the market are ready to give room for the project”, Batoole said.
The meeting attracted among others, Chairperson Iganga district, Gabula Ezera, the woman MP Iganga Hon Kauma Sauda Alibaawo, district NRM chairperson Hajji Walubi Abubakar, deputy RDC Namagogwe Hajjira, division Chairpersons, municipality Councillors, and all leaders at various levels in the Municipality.
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