Legislators on Public Service and Local Government committee, along with Kabale district authorities, clashed on Monday afternoon with officials from the Ministry of Local Government’s Infrastructure Development division over the delayed execution of directives by Minister Raphael Magyezi concerning the dispute over stall and lockup allocations in Kabale Municipality market.
Led by Ben Batom Koryong, MP for Dopoth West County, and Jimmy Lwanga, MP for Njeru Municipality, legislators, and officials from the Ministry of Local Government, including Emmanuel Mwebaze, the Infrastructure Engineer, and Faisal Ssali Kikulunkunyo, the Principal Development Officer, were in Kabale for a fact-finding mission regarding the progress of the market on Monday afternoon and the response to complaints from disgruntled vendors.
In July 2023, Minister Magyezi ordered a fresh allocation of lockups and stalls in the new central market after meeting with disgruntled vendors who had petitioned him, citing irregularities in the allocation process. The Minister also instructed municipal council authorities to halt revenue collection and promised to return within a month to oversee the fresh allocation exercise.
During the inspection, tensions arose as legislators, district leaders, and local government ministry officials questioned the prolonged absence of Minister Magyezi to provide directives on behalf of the government.
Godfrey Nyakahuma, Kabale Resident District Commissioner, expressed frustration over Magyezi’s delay, citing security concerns as disgruntled vendors threatened to stage a major demonstration against the government.
During the market inspection, vendors in the Matooke and Irish potato wing raised concerns about the lack of toilets and security lights in their section. They also demanded an explanation for the failure of the municipal council to deploy night security personnel, which led to the theft of their stock.
Legislators and district leaders were surprised when they pressed Mwebaze to explain why Magyezi or any other official from the Ministry of Local Government had not returned to Kabale to resolve the matter, but he declined to respond. Mwebaze stated that he could not provide a stance as he was not involved in the allocation process and was present only to provide technical information about the market’s design and its benefits to the area.
Batom later informed reporters that the raised issues would be brought before parliament for discussion and to formulate a way forward. In 2019, Chong Chong International Construction (CICO), a Chinese company, was contracted to upgrade the Kabale market under the World Bank-funded Markets and Agricultural Trade Improvement Program (MATIP III), with a budget of 23 billion shillings. The market was handed over to the government in December 2022.
