Hajji Issa Ssekito the chairperson of Kampala City Traders Association Uganda (KACITA) has revealed that the leaders behind the formation and registration of different traders’ associations and unions in Kampala are targeting President Museveni’s deals especially during these political campaigns while extorting big landlords in the city.
“All those traders associations and federations you are seeing in the city are not about fighting for traders. No. Most of them are fraudsters who are capitalizing on traders’ woes to target President Museveni’s money. Ask yourself, why are most of those associations mushrooming when political campaigns are on the way? For us as KACITA who have the experience, we are warning our people to be careful with those leaders of the so called associations who are just making them feel excited without solving their real problems,” Ssekito said.
He revealed that currently, Kampala Central Police Station is investigating two of the association leaders after one of the top city landlords filed a complaint of exhortation against them with recorded audio and video evidences
He said that both leaders approached the landlord with threats that they are going to fuel tenants on his building to continue striking and also use their contacts in government to report him to the president for violating the tenant, landlord laws. They warned this city landlord that the only way to leave him was if he gives them money.
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Currently there over 20 traders associations among which include: KACITA which is headed by Ssekito, Federation of Uganda Traders Association (FUTA) headed by John Kabanda, United Arcades Traders Entrepreneurs Association (UATEA) headed by Edward Ntale, Godfrey Katongole’s Kampala Arcade Traders Association (KATA), Musoke Nagenda’s National Entrepreneurs and Traders Association (NETA), Katukazane Shoe dealers of Moses Lwegaba among others. All these associations allegedly lead traders working in different arcades and plazas in the town.
This website has established that for arcades and plazas associations to join some of these big associations like KACITA, UTEA, FUTA, they have to pay money between Shs3m-Shs10m so as to get a certificate to recognize their leadership and whenever they get any problem, the association which certified them comes out to fight for them.
“The reason why arcade associations pay to join bigger associations is because when their landlords start harassing them by increases rent, electricity, toilet fees among other costs, they force for a meeting with the landlord because they have a bigger voice than those who he usually meets as tenants on his/her building,” one of the arcades association leader told this website during the course of investigating this story
He added that it is very difficult for traders’ association leaders to leave the meeting with the landlord without him giving them money to control the situation and calm the tenants down.
Traders also are supposed to pay monthly subscription fees ranging between Shs100,000 to Shs200,000 according to the association one belongs to. This money is used to run the association activities like paying office rent, buying stationary, paying leaders allowances and other bills.
Members are also supposed to fundraise money to facilitate leaders travels locally and international.
This website has established that association leaders’ main target is to get bigger number of traders subscribing to their associations more than their opponents because it gives them an upper hand when it comes to negotiating and sealing deals at the national level with the president, ministers of finance, trade, bosses at Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) among others.
A source said that during the Electronic Fiscal Receipting and Invoicing System (EFRIS) fight, Kabanda’s FUTA leadership received a number of incentives both from URA and President Museveni himself who gifted them with three brand new cars and whenever they attend State House or URA meetings with the president or Musinguzi Rujoki, they are given an allowance which is not less than Shs5m.
Kabanda told this website that the said cars were gifted to the federation to smoothen the running of the trader’s association. However, he was not clear on the allegations that the numbers plates of the said cars were registered in his personal names and in the names of Lwegaba.
Kabanda explained that the reason why he formed Kampala New Traders Generation and FUTA was to liberate traders from dealers who were using them to achieve their personal benefits. He accused KACITA leadership of working for top city landlords who are mistreating traders.
“Ssekito who is accusing us of being fraudsters is the spokesperson of the landlord’s association of Bagagga Kwagalana and they helped him to force Musoke Nagenda out of Kacita,” one of leaders in FUTA alleged.
This website has established that traders are currently sharply divided after losing trust in their associations leaders and it is the reason why URA, KCCA and Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja who was assigned by the president to handle traders’ problems found it difficult to deal with their leaders on ground given that everyone was fronting his personal issues.
However, Ssekito accuses Nabanja of failing the president on solving traders’ problems claiming that he is trying to reach out on her but she does not pick his calls yet her assistants only tell him that she is busy with her political campaigns
Lwegaba the spokesperson of FUTA accused landlords; Drake Lubega, Godfrey Kyeswa, Christine Nabukeera, Freeman Kiyimba, Tom Kitandwe among others of leading harassment of tenants renting on their buildings in the city
Lwegaba said that traders are renting shops in city centre between Shs1m to Shs10m and landlords are increasing with threats of evicting them if they fail to accept the rent increments.
