Tenants and landlords should resolve wrangles amicably

Reports of tension between tenants and landlords have been common in the media. The Ministry of Lands, Housing & Urban Development notes these incidents with a sense of foreboding as indeed we may yet witness more of the same. The tide has now turned and landlords are becoming vulnerable.

How are tenants supposed to relate with their new landlords who have acquired land titles and want to know the tenants on their land, let alone open boundaries to know the extent of their land, if these actions may lead to their death?

How can we resolve and expect to untangle the challenge of multiple rights on the same piece of land when the one with inferior rights (tenants) is chasing and hacking to death the one with superior rights (landlords)?

The 1995 Constitution of Uganda provides under Article 237(1) that land in Uganda belongs to the citizens of Uganda and shall vest in them in accordance with customary, freehold, mailo and leasehold tenure. A tenant by occupancy on either mailo, freehold or leasehold tenure holding enjoys security of occupancy on the land. A tenant by occupancy is that lawful or bonafide occupant as defined by section 29 of the Land Act Cap. 227.

Any tenant who does not fall under the above categories is an unlawful occupant (squatter), therefore, his/her occupancy (tenancy) is illegal and not protected by the law.

Incidences of occupants (tenants) disregarding the law and basically ‘evicting’ landowners are rife. Yet the two categories need to work together to sort out or resolve the challenge of multiple rights on the same piece of land through the lawful or the bonafide occupant buying out their holding(s) from the registered landowner or coming to an understanding whereby the land is shared between the lawful or bonafide tenant and registered landowner in a mutually agreed land-sharing arrangement.

In such situation, the tenant receives a land title and the land ceases to have multiple rights. This would maintain harmony among the landlords and tenants. The ways of going about the two methods is provided for in the 2013 National Land Policy and other available guidelines on administration and management of land.

A landowner owns the land forever, if his or her holding falls under freehold or mailo tenure. The landowner may sub-lease, mortgage, pledge or sell the land without giving the first option of purchase to the tenants. However, the new landowner who buys the land must be introduced to the lawful and bonafide occupants and must respect the interests he/she finds on the land.

If the landowner wishes to dispose of land that is also claimed by a lawful occupant he may give the lawful or bonafide occupants the first option to buy out his/her holding(s).
Lawful and bonafide occupants enjoy security of occupancy. They must pay annual ground rent, which the government has made to be nominal to the landowner.

They may acquire a Certificate of Occupancy by applying for it through the landlord. With the permission of the landlord, they may sublet or subdivide the land they occupy. When they end the occupancy, they return it to the landlord or may sell to another person with the consent of the landlord.

There are occupants who are not protected by the law. They are sometimes referred to as squatters or illegal occupants. The law provides that such persons need to take reasonable steps to look for the landowner and negotiate with the owner concerning their stay on the land.

The Lands ministry condemns strongly the criminal acts of squatters who hacked to death the mailo land owners of a 322-acre land on which they were settled. If the purported claimants to the land had no documents, the ‘squatters’ should have reported the matter to the authorities.

In addition, because tenants thought they were under threat of eviction, they should have alerted the office of the Resident District Commissioner as head of the security committee in the district, instead of opting to hack the land owners to death.

Arising out of the unfortunate Kiboga incident, some leaders of the area have wrongly placed the blame on the Lands ministry, claiming that officials of the ministry identify land whose leases have expired or are about to expire, which they then lease and evict squatters! This is not possible because issues of land are decentralised and the ministry, therefore, has no powers to allocate or lease such land.

The Uganda Land Commission, a self-accounting body is a controlling authority but only over government land and not mailo land as the land in question was. The law that governs the issuance of leases provides that once a lease expires, the previous lease holder is given the first option to have it renewed before it can be allocated to another.

The ministry finds it useful to inform the public that the non-renewal of the mandate of the Committee on Illegal Land Evictions was because of a legal opinion from the Attorney General’s chambers that the committee was usurping powers of courts and land administration institutions as provided for in the law.

Finally, all the above described possible interventions have been provided for by government and are contained in the National Land Policy and the various laws governing the management of land.
The missing link is the sensitisation of the citizens on these provisions and their rights and obligations as contained within the law. Unfortunately, the Lands ministry that is mandated to do this does not have the budget to undertake that sensitisation as wholesomely as it ought to do.

Mr Obbo is the spokesperson, Ministry of Lands, Housing & Urban Development. dennisfo2002@yahoo.com

Poll body denies collusion with crime preventers

Kampala- The Electoral Commission have denied claims by the leader of Opposition that crime preventers are being used to “alter” the voters register.

Yesterday, Mr Wafula Oguttu posted on his official Facebook page how he got a briefing from the a group of crime preventers on how they are combing villages singling out supporters of especially FDC and NRM in an attempt to influence their voting on polling day. “…FDC members so far identified are being invited to meet officials of Museveni campaign task force and to be given money to leave FDC,” the post read in part.

Mr Taremwa noted that: “The register is supposed to help candidates know who their voters are, where they are and where they will be voting from. How they use those registers does not concern us,” he said.

Mr Oguttu further said: “This time round, the LC1 chairs have been excluded from the recruitment process because there are some chairpersons who do not support Mr Museveni’s 2016 presidential bid. If the Opposition in Uganda is not bewitched, it is imperative that they come up with a coordinated effort and demand a halt to this madness.”

Police spokesperson Fred Enanga was not taking calls. Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesperson Patrick Onyango referred the matter to the Security Ministry saying it was a “misdirected inquiry.” It was not possible to get a comment from the Minister for Security Karooro Okurut as her mobile phone was switched off. However, Col Shaban Bantariza, deputy government spokesperson says the government he serves and trusts cannot infringe on the duties of the EC because it is aware of the chaos that could arise from recruiting incompetent people.

He added that people going to manage the voting exercise must be tested, proved and competent enough. “Therefore, the Diso and Gisos have no role as far as the recruitment of presiding officers and polling assistants is concerned.”

He described the issue of deleting and transferring names of some voters by crime preventers as a total lie and baseless allegation.

That EC spokesperson equally rebuffed the claims. “We have released a programme of recruitment, advertised the jobs in national newspapers and a process of recruitment is going to start. How then can someone say we are going to only be a given a list from the security agencies. That allegation does not hold water,” Taremwa said.

editorial@ug.nationmedia.com

Stop degrading the environment

I was born in the late 80s and lived in Naalya in the 90s.
When we were growing up, kaveera/plastic bags and plastic bottles were not as common as they are today.
Bread such as Tip Top was paper packed (we even used to cover our books with those bread packs).

Soda was packed in glass bottles which are easily recycled. Today, packaging has changed in a detrimental way. What went wrong?
You would say times have changed but do we have to give in to the visible downside of change?

Why does development have to cause degradation?
Laws are put in place but never implemented. Where is this country headed to?

My grandfather used to clean the compound by sweeping it while pulling out weeds from the yard. Today I was cleaning the yard and because it has been raining, there was a lot of plastic buried in our yard.

Instead of pulling out weeds like grandpa did, I was pulling out plastic bags and bottles!
Now every politician is looking for votes but none of them is really concerned enough to consider addressing this prevailing environmental plague.

Why doesn’t anyone step up especially KCCA and other authorities and implement the law on plastics and kaveera use? We are degrading the environment. Where will our children and children’s children live? In a barren land? Because we looked on and did nothing when we saw the pearl of Africa being distorted by its citizens who embrace every kind of investment even those that are robbing the pearl of its pearly features?

Plastic packs have got to be banned.
We should consider the times to come. We should stop adopting things that don’t benefit but instead ruin us. Developed countries recycle their plastics, but we don’t yet we want to live like them.
We should live to our motto which says For God and My Country. This is our country and we should be responsible for it.
The anti-plastic living starts with you the citizen. Let us keep the pearl shinning
Twin Olyvia,
olyviatwin87@gmail.com

Besigye promises to revamp rail, air transport

Dr Kizza Besigye arrives for a rally in Arua Town recently. Photo by Felix Warom 

By  ERIASA MUKIIBI SSERUNJOGI & FELIX WAROM
Posted 


Friday, January 1  

2016 at 

02:00

Arua- To open his speech at his rally in Arua on Wednesday, FDC presidential candidate Dr Kizza Besigye thanked the people of the town for “demonstrating that you are tired of Mr Museveni and NRM”.

He said this because the Boma grounds was overflowing with people. Before getting to the grounds, Dr Besigye had held a procession through Arua Town that lasted about 45 minutes.

In 2001 when he first campaigned in Arua, Dr Besigye claimed at the rally that: “the government was forced to postpone the election for one week (due to the big turn up)”. It is hard to verify the veracity of this statement since the Electoral Commission then cited logistical challenges as the reason for the postponement.
What is true, however, is that Arua has in the past been a potential Opposition stronghold. In 1996, for instance, Dr Paul Ssemogerere, who was Mr Museveni’s strongest challenger, pulled what he says was “one of the biggest crowds I have ever seen”.

Dr Besigye, therefore, was under some sort of pressure, especially since both President Museveni and Mr Amama Mbabazi, his key challengers in the election, had already held what had been described as massive rallies in Arua Town.

Mr Jonathan Musinguzi, the Arua District police commander, probably added to the pressure by warning ahead of time that Dr Besigye’s rally would be blocked if he got to Arua Town after the 6pm deadline for addressing campaign rallies.

Dr Besigye took issue with a poll recently commissioned and published by Daily Monitor, which showed that had the election been held between December 6-9, Mr Museveni would win by 60 per cent, Dr Besigye would poll 21 per cent and Mr Mbabazi would come a distant third with 6 per cent. “It is not a matter of publishing in a newspaper that you will win with 60 per cent,” Dr Besigye said, “You will this time have to show us where those people are.”

He, however, did not say whether his team has commissioned a poll and what he estimates to be his actual support.

His address was highly conversational, drawing in the largely worked up crowd on most of the points. “How many of you have no jobs,” he asked, for instance. A big number of those present put up their hands.

He put another question regarding the poll commissioned by Daily Monitor: “Where are the 60 out of every 100 people who they say support Mr Museveni?” The chorus answer came: “Nowhere.”

Both Mr Museveni and Mr Mbabazi had already promised to grant Arua a city status. Dr Besigye, apart from promising to lift Arua to city status, said he will prioritise planning the city to ensure it is modern.

He also promised to connect Arua to the national power grid, saying that Nyagak Dam, which currently supplies the town provides power that produces light comparable to “the light produced by a candle”.
Dr Besigye said when Mr Museveni took power in 1986, one would move from Mombasa to Pakwach by train, “but where the train used to pass is now a bush”.

Promise
He promised to revamp rail and air transport, referring to the days of Uganda Airlines when there were daily flights between Kampala and Arua. “Even before Museveni came to power, there has been Uganda Airlines that used to fly daily from Entebbe to Arua but this is no more and Mr Museveni calls it steady progress. Besides we have most terrible roads in the country and Museveni dodges the bad roads by using the air at our expense,” he said amidst ululation from the crowd.

editorial@ug.nationmedia.com

Happy New Year!

The New Year is upon us. No doubt, Ugandans have woken up with great expectations.
Nonetheless, beneath this bubble of excitement runs mixed feelings of what the election year 2016 will bring. This is why the security agencies, politicians, and the common person should take time to reflect on our actions and what we desire for Uganda.
The easiest is to rally to our national call as countrymen and women.

Therefore, as we begin the New Year, let’s all renew our devotion to country and make Uganda a land of freedom. And in this common pursuit, not even the intense struggles between rivals for elective positions in the 2016 polls should diminish this resolve for unity.
Indeed, the February 18 elections should never force us to abandon our old fraternal ways because the polls will soon be over and we return to our struggles to put food on the table for families. This implies our future, without doubt, lies in our hands. But this can only be achieved when we stand together as citizens.

This demands both our leaders and voters alike live true to our country’s call – the national anthem. This song of devotion underscores our future lies in this in this country –Uganda. The New Year, therefore, should accord us a new dawn to echo our country’s creed of oneness –to coexist and live in peace and friendship.

Lest we forget, in our moments of excitement to usher in the New Year, the threat of terrorism still looms large. As we have warned before, the terrorists, as seen in several instances, take aim at soft targets that hit hardest. It has been the case in Uganda, Kenya, and Nigeria.

Of course, nothing has so far come of these warnings but this must not tempt us into a false sense of security. Even as we usher in the New Year with festivities, and cracking fireworks, let’s keep our guard up lest terrorists creep up on us.
In sum, let’s exercise caution in public places; including crowd-puller sports grounds, parks, hospitals, markets, fuel stations, and discotheques.
Happy New Year!

Museveni promises road equipment for districts

Kampala- The NRM presidential candidate Yoweri Museveni has asked Ugandans to treat each other equally like a businessman would to his customers.

Mr Museveni also asked citizens to remain united and reject divisions along tribal or religious grounds.

“Those who spread sectarianism are devils and should move out of our way. NRM believes in unity and through unity we have got strength and peace that have led to development,” Mr Museveni said according to the statement sent by Ms Linda Nabusayi, the presidential press secretary, yesterday.

Mr Museveni, seeking a 5th elective term in office, was speaking during a campaign rally at Gisorora playgrounds in Nyakabande Sub-county in Bufumbira East Constituency on Wednesday.
He kicked off his Western region campaign trail in Kisoro District in Rubuguri Parish.

“The NRM track record is clear. We believe in unity. We do not believe in sectarianism. We believe everyone is equal,” Mr Museveni emphasised.

Mr Museveni promised to tarmac more roads connecting Kisoro to other areas. The other roads he promised to tarmac if reelected include Kisoro-Kurigo-Bwindi, Kisoro-Gahinga and the Kisoro-Rubuguri-Ruko roads.

He also said the road from Bunagana and Kyahanika is already tarmacked and promised to buy equipment for Kisoro District to enable it manage its own roads.

“I have bought machines from Japan. Every district will get a water bowser, a wheel loader, a grader, two tippers and a road compactor,” Mr Museveni said.

On education, the NRM presidential candidate said he was happy with the increased number of schools in Kisoro with 15 private secondary schools while 40 of the 195 primary schools are government-aided.

“When I was in Ntare School, there were so many students from Kigezi because Kigezi had only Butobere Secondary School which did not even have A-level. When you hear that Kisoro District has 13 government-aided schools, that is a big achievement,” he said.

Mr Museveni urged the people of Kisoro to vote for him and all NRM party flag bearers in the forthcoming general election.

The NRM flag bearers from Kisoro District include Rose Kabagenyi (Woman MP), John Kamara Nizey’lmana (Bufumbira North), Sam Bitangaro (Bufumbira South), Sam Byuibesho (Municipality) Richard Ndyana (Mayor) and Abeli Bizimana (district chair).

editorial@ug.nationmedia.com

M-Pesa enters Uganda in Safaricom, MTN deal

An MTN mobile money agent attends to clients. MTN has struck a deal with Safaricom to allow Ugandans make transactions with Kenya. file photo 

Ugandan customers can now make mobile money transactions with Kenya following a deal between Safaricom and MTN Uganda, a move seen to boost trade between the two countries.

This partnership comes months after Safaricom roped in Vodacom Tanzania and MTN Rwanda to introduce cross-border transaction between customers on the respective networks.

Betty Mwangi, Safaricom’s financial services director, said the initiative will provide a reliable and affordable way for businesses to transact across borders.

“This move by the private sector complements economic initiatives spearheaded by the East African Community heads of state,” Ms Mwangi said.

Uganda is one of Kenya’s top trading partners and the pact is not only expected to increase trade between the two nations, but also to offer cheaper remittance services.

High demand for M-Pesa in Uganda has seen unauthorised usage of the service for years driven mainly by the high Kenyan student population and traders operating from Kampala and other towns in the country.

Safaricom has more than 22 million M-Pesa users while about five million MTN customers use mobile money in Africa. “Our subscribers will be able to cash out at any of our 55,000 agents across the country,” said Phrase Lubega, MTN financial services general manager.

The transactions infrastructure between the two networks has been enabled by MFS Africa, a developer and distributer of mobile financial solutions to markets across Africa.

MFS Africa CEO Dare Okoudjou said: “We are confident that the cashless revolution that started in Kenya almost a decade ago, will now unlock not only intra-African remittances but also serve as a catalyst for trade and economic growth in the region.”

The funds will be sent in Kenyan shillings and received in Ugandan shillings, based on the prevailing exchange rate.

Four more Mbabazi supporters jailed over Ntungamo clashes

Some of Independent presidential candidate Amama Mbabazi supporters flash the Go Forward symbol at court in Ntungamo District on Wednesday. PHOTO BY PEREZ RUMANZI 

Ntungamo- Four more supporters of Independent presidential candidate Amama Mbabazi on Wednesday appeared in Ntungamo Grade II magistrate’s court and were also remanded.

They are Frank Batemyeto, Ramathan Onzima, Lawrence King Mugabe and Rogers Nduga.

The court presided over by Mr Anania Tusiime remanded them for lack of jurisdiction to try them on offences of grievous harm and malicious damage.

They did not take plea on the two offenses.
They were only allowed to take plea on assault charges. The four are accused of assaulting eight people in Ntungamo Town on December 13, but they denied the charges.

“You cannot enter plea because this court has no jurisdiction to try you. You will reappear here again on January 4, in a competent court, where you will take plea and possibly apply for bail,” said Mr Tusiime.

Their lawyer, Mr Onesmus Matsiko, protested the way the suspects were taken to the court, arguing that the process was hijacked as the lawyers and the accused were not told to prepare.

He also said the jurisdiction magistrate was not present.
“This was an ambush on our side. The magistrate whom they appeared before has no powers and it was set up so that the suspects do not apply for bail. However, there is hope that justice (process) has begun. We were just scared of where they will be taken,” Mr Matsiko told Daily Monitor at the court.

While remanding other seven suspects on Tuesday, the Grade One magistrate, Mr Richard Ndangwa, said he would resume court when the New Year begins.

Mr Benon Turyamureeba, Mr Elia Mayinja, Mr Abudulla Kasajja, Mr Jamir Mutebi, Mr George Sebatindira, Mr Asadu Semakura and Mr Frank Kabari are on remand pending court ruling on their bail application on January 4. Mr Christopher Aine, the head of Mr Mbabazi’s security, whose name had been included on charge sheet on Tuesday before it was amended, still was not produced in court on Wednesday.

Ntungamo District Police Commander Baker Kawonawo said the four were the only remaining suspects in police custody while many more were still at large.

Meanwhile, Mr Bight Muhumuza, the coordinator for Mr Mbabazi campaigns in Ankole sub-region, who had been arrested as he went to check on his colleagues in Ntungamo court on Tuesday, has been released on police bond.
He was released on Wednesday afternoon but was charged with assault, causing grievous harm and malicious damage..

editorial@ug.nationmedia.com

Gulu artistes want Shs7m from NRM

Gulu- Artistes from Gulu District under their umbrella body, Yellow Team Musicians Association, have accused NRM leaders of failing to clear their performance fees during President Museveni’s rallies in the sub-region.

The artistes, who performed their song ‘Yellow bus’ that featured 30 of them, claim that at separate campaign venues in Pader, Kitgum and Agago districts, they were abandoned without payment.

According to Mr Robert Kaunda, the association general secretary, they were first notified to perform in Gulu District and were paid Shs500,000.

“When we headed to Agago, we were told to get in touch with the NRM Woman MP flag bearer, Ms Lillian Abalo, to help us through the payment process. But since then, she has not answered our repeated phone calls,” Mr Kaunda said in an interview in Gulu Town on Wednesday.

However, Ms Abalo, in a telephone interview on Wednesday, said she doesn’t know of any deal the artistes had with her. “It’s true I saw them performing in my district, but they must have missed the person who should have paid them. I don’t want to be dragged into something I don’t know,” Ms Abalo said.

Mr Kaunda also said they incurred costs on hiring a vehicle since they were not provided with any means of transport and so they demand Shs7 million.

Mr Rogers Mulindwa, the communications officer at the NRM Secretariat, in a telephone interview, said the artistes should show proof of the contract agreement.

“We cannot deny or believe that the artistes were contacted, all we want is for them to produce evidence and we shall ascertain the truth,” Mr Mulindwa said.

editorial@ug.nationmedia.com

Police officer, teenager killed in operation

Luweero- Police in Luweero District have confirmed the death of one of their own and a 19-year-old boy during an operation in Mulungi Omu village on Wednesday.

The district police commander, Mr Paul Wataka, said Cpl Ronald Odongo of Luweero Central Police, and Sabastian Kabarebe were killed through a negligent shooting.

The officer believed to have caused the deaths is in custody.
“It is true the operation to have Lawrence Tinkasimire, a suspect, had been sanctioned by my office but the officers who handled the operation will be reprimanded. There was a serious act of negligence leading to loss of two innocent lives,” Mr Wataka told residents of Mulungi Omu Village on Wednesday.

The Resident District Commissioner, Ms Alice Muwanguzi, told family members of the deceased teenager that her office was investigating the matter.

According to Ms Prossy Nalunga, the mother of the deceased, eight armed men in civilian clothes surrounded their home on Wednesday, demanding for Mr Tinkasimire, who was in the house resting.

Ms Nalunga said the officers stormed the house and started beating up the deceased without explanation. She claimed that one of the officers shot his son in the left arm. “Another bullet hit the police officer who was trying to wrestle Kabarebe. When he escaped with a bleeding arm from the house, he was shot and killed by another police officer,” she said.

Ms Mirembe Dorotiya, an eyewitness, claimed that the armed men who stormed the house seemed not to know the person they wanted. “They suspected that the young boy was Lawrence Tinkasimire, the head of the family ,who was in the bedroom resting.

The officers did not bother to inquire and possibly explain to the people outside the house,” Ms Mirembe told the RDC on Wednesday.

editorial@ug.nationmedfia.com

Crime preventers accused of abetting crime in Gulu

Gulu- The leadership of Gulu Municipality has accused crime preventers of abetting crime contrary to their stipulated mandate.

Mr Robert Acaye, the district councillor Kabedo-Opong parish, Bardege Division in Gulu Municipality, said the crime preventers have become a security threat in the area and are directly involved in committing crimes wherever they are deployed.

“They have instead engaged in criminal activities, they have turned against the people they are meant to protect. Instead of promoting security, they are instead a source of insecurity,” he observed.

Ms Lucy Olanya, another councillor of Queen’s Parish in Laroo Division, said some of the crime preventers are now working independently without the direct supervision of police.

“Police should streamline the work of crime preventers so that they are brought to order, they have turned out to be police themselves by handling cases among the communities,” she said.

The Aswa Regional Police Commander, Mr Wilson Kwanya, warned that any crime preventer acting contrary to the law of the country will be liable for his action.

Mr Kwanya said such individuals will be tried before the courts of law.

“They were never trained to work in isolation, but to work with police in feeding us with what is on the ground in areas where we might not be at that particular point,” he stressed.
In Acholi sub-region comprising seven districts, there are a total of 9,000 crime preventers.

editorial@ug.nationmedia.com.

The perils of corruption make it a political issue

The subject of pervasive corruption in Uganda accentuates a deeply seated sense of pessimism, followed by powerlessness in its victims, which leads to an internalised and normalised justification of it. Corruption, primarily perpetuates itself through a degenerative morality/ethics, feeds the politics of lumpenproletariats, and, in my view, it is the manifestation of the body politics of violence against societal integrity.

Corruption in Uganda has acquired a unique and devastating characteristic that needs proper scrutiny. The arguments in Moses Khisa’s Is Corruption a moral or political problem? (The Observer, December 3, 2015), enticed me to write this piece.

The uniqueness of Uganda’s corruption is that, it has acquired a sustainable life of its own and is now a regenerative system, courted and used officially as a political tool to sustain this government, and a method through which asymmetry in government obtains. However, the bigger picture of corruption is that it is largely inspired by the State functionaries as an exercise of structural violence. Through rampant corruption, the system violently assaults our moral fabrics, thereby, setting ground for heinous crimes against the State and all its institutions.

Uganda is overwhelmed by corruption in ways that shocks even Lucifer, himself. Nothing in this country goes on without bribe-seeking or expectation of it. No public or private institution is immune of this vice. Corruption is the HIV of our societal institutions, and its endemic malfunctions, are its Aids.

The level of bribe-seeking has become so commonplace that every service provider appears ordained with natural sense of deficits to justify the act. Every moment, from the simple act of chivalry, bribe and kickbacks are expected. For that, the environment for syndicated corruption, a version of organised violent crime, has festered. Here, everyone is connected on the corruption lifeline, from the president, ministers, the judges, law enforcers, to the last person who supervises ghost employees, signs for their salaries and shares such illicit proceeds with their bosses above.

The argument that bribe-seeking is a form of indirect taxation, exemplifies a significant loophole in government tax regime. Here, again, we see the decay in moral principles, and inability to apply an equitable tax regime. The rich and well-connected people are allowed to transact business in this country without paying taxes. The so-called foreign investors are lavished with tax holidays with guarantees to repatriate profits tax-free, at the expense of the local investors.

In fact, the entire economic structure of Uganda is hostile, and excluding of local investments. It is such structured inequities that replenishes the bloodlines of corruption and augments the culture of bribe-seeking and taking cuts. A Dr Carl Stauffer observed that corruption feeds off of power asymmetry and thereby inadvertently nurtures and legitimates hierarchy, patrimony and dependency.

The brand of Uganda’s corruption is the manifestation of non-combat violence waged by the NRM against the moral fabrics of society. The NRM’s core ideology is rooted in the justification of violence as a means of achieving social transformation. More so, the people who loot this country are well-protected. They have their sons, daughters and relatives in high places in the security agencies and in key nodes, where money and power changes hands.

I was sincerely disturbed by the arrogance and violence imbued in the testimonies during proceedings at the Justice Catherine Bamugemereire’s commission that investigated the Uganda National Roads Authority. Suspects spoke as if they had the right to have acted unprofessionally to siphon funds and build substandard roads.
To them, such diversions bore no imminent sense of criminality.
Corruption has already devoured the moral and conscience of our society. You would expect the President to have acted expeditiously on the report. Only to note that his hands are tied because the tale of this corruption has a complicated trail and webs that spares no one. Everyone is culpable and we are left without any moral authority to confront it. The perils of corruption make it equally a political issue.

Mr Komakech is a Ugandan social critic and political analyst based in Canada.
mordust_26@yahoo.ca

2015: Silverbacks, Gazelles competed at AfroBasket

Silverbacks power forward Stanley Ocitti attempts a jumper against Central African Republic at the AfroBasketball Championships held in Tunisia last year. Ocitti was impressive. Courtesy photo 

Kampala- As Silverbacks captain Stephen Omony stated, qualification to the AfroBasket championships should be made a habit rather than a one off.

For 2015 though, the country can celebrate a hugely successful year in which the Silverbacks and Gazelles, the national men and women’s basketball teams all took part in the continental championship.

This was in addition to the ladies’ club side KCCA who returned to the continental competition for the first time since 2008 while City Oilers narrowly missed out on qualification after a narrow loss to Egyptian side Gezira.

“My conclusion will be to appreciate the opportunity to be among the 16 top teams in Africa and people should watch out for Uganda next time,” Omony said after the men’s tournament in August. The results were not as fruitful, the Silverbacks bowing out with a 1-4 record.

The only victory came in the 72-64 classification game triumph over Zimbabwe to finish 15th at the 16 team tournament.

There were some decent individual performances on the other hand particularly from Omony who averaged 17.5 points against powerhouses Tunisia and Nigeria before completing with 12.5 points in four games.

Stanley Ochitti too certainly left with an enhanced reputation, the power forward averaging a team high 14.6 points in five games.

The women’s team fared slightly better finishing 10th out of 12 nations with a 2-5 record and had Peace Proscovia pick a tournament high 12.7 rebounds with Muhayimina Namuwaya coming fifth in the same category.

At the Fiba Africa Club Champions Cup, KCCA Leopards also finished 11th out of 12 teams with Namuwaya averaging nine rebounds, the second best figures at the tournament that concluded at the start of this month in Angola.

They qualified for this tournament after finishing second at the Zone V championship following a 73-62 loss to Tanzania’s Berco Stars in the final.

In the men, City Oilers improved from their third placed finish at the same tournament in Rwanda but still fell agonizingly short, 75-73 to Gezira in the final.

Oilers win league
The consolation for that disappointment was picking up a third successive National League title after a 4-3 series triumph over the UCU Canons.

The feat for the five-year-old club saw them become only the second side to complete a three-peat after Falcons between 2002-04. This followed an 8-67 win in the deciding Game Seven of the Fuba- Pepsi League playoff final.

Ben Komakech woke from his slumber to score 14 points while compatriots Kami Kabange added 18 and Landry Ndikumana 11 to deny Nicholas Natuhereza’s side a first league triumph in their 11 year history.

In the women,Judith Nansobya scored 19 points in game six to help the UCU Lady Canons hold off a late KCCA leopards charge and win their best of seven series 4-2.

Happy New year

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As we begin the New Year, Ugandans have been urged to remain peaceful, especially during the general election. 

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Friday, January 1  

2016 at 

02:00

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Messi marks 500th Barca appearance with goal

London- Lionel Messi scored on his 500th Barcelona appearance as the European champions moved back to the top of the table with a 4-0 win over Real Betis as La Liga returned from a curtailed winter break on Wednesday.

Atletico Madrid remain level on points with Barca thanks to two goals in the final two minutes from Angel Correa and Antoine Griezmann to emerge 2-0 victors at Rayo Vallecano.

And Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice and missed a penalty as Real Madrid eased the pressure on under-fire coach Rafael Benitez with a 3-1 win over Real Sociedad to stay two points behind the leaders.

Barca celebrated their fifth trophy of 2015 before kick-off after adding the Club World Cup to their haul last time out with Messi captaining the side in the absence of Andres Iniesta. “It has been a spectacular year and we wanted to finish it this way,” said Messi.

“It will be difficult to improve on what we have done, but we always try. We have a great squad that are desperate to continue winning.”

Yet, on a day dominated by controversial refereeing decisions, they were handed a gift to open the scoring after a decent start by Betis.

Antonio Adan clearly played the ball before catching Messi as he punched the ball to safety, but referee Inaki Vicando Garrido surprised everyone by pointing to the spot.

Neymar hit the bar with the resulting penalty, but Heiko Westermann could only turn the rebound into his own net under pressure from Ivan Rakitic.

From Betis’ misfortune the floodgates opened as a lovely one-two between Neymar and Messi allowed the later to tap home his 425th goal for the club.

Luis Suarez added a third with a cool finish from Sergio Busquets’s pass inside the first minute of the second-half.
And the Uruguayan rounded off the scoring seven minutes from time.

At the Santiago Bernabeu, Ronaldo recovered from a terrible start after blasting his first penalty of the day over the bar to put Madrid in front from another spot-kick just before half-time.

Wednesday La Liga results
Levante 0 – 1 Malaga
Madrid 3 – 1 Sociedad
Vallecano 0 – 2 Atletico
Sevilla 2 – 0 Espanyol
Eibar 2 – 0 Gijon
FC Barcelona 4 – 0 Betis
Celta Vigo 0 – 1 Bilbao
Getafe 0 – 0 Deportivo
Las Palmas 4 – 1 Granada

Small businesses tasked to keep books of accounts

Trade minister Amelia Kyambadde. file photo 

In Summary

Reason. Move meant to streamline trade in goods and services

Government has now made it mandatory for businesses whose trading licences cost more than three currency points (Shs60, 000 and above) to keep books of accounts.

According to ministry of Trade statistics, majority of businesses paying for such licences operate informally and without records.
Announcing the development contained in the Trade Licensing Amendment Act, 2015, at the ministry offices last week, Trade minister Amelia Kyambadde said the changes are meant to streamline trade in goods and services.

She said: “Government has amended the Trade Licensing Act cap 101 following the assent by the President to the Trade Licensing Amendment Act 2015.”

She continued: “The Amendment Act provides for a number of changes in the trade licensing of business that Kampala Capital City Authority, local and urban authorities, business community and other stakeholders need to take note of and ensure compliance.”

The changes, she said, provide for mandatory keeping of books of accounts by businesses that pay a licence of more than three currency points. One currency point is an equivalent of Shs20,000.
When contacted on Tuesday, Kampala City Traders Association chairman Everest Kayondo applauded the amendments, saying most of them were as a result of their demand and prudence.

He said: “Book keeping and other amendments in that law were our proposals. We have argued for bookkeeping because it helps the owner of the enterprise understand whether he/she is making profit or recording losses.”

The amended law, according to Ms Kyambadde, also provides for increase in the number of grades in a city, municipality and towns from the current 2 to 4 grades. This is important for purposes of determining trade licencing fees.

Unlike before where traders would pay for licences irrespective of its grade— size of business, the new law requires that each enterprise is licenced according to its size.
It also provides for trade in services. Previously the law only considered licencing trade in goods, leaving out trade in services, depriving authorities the much needed revenue from such entities minting money in the service industry.

Changing the duration of the licence to 12 months from date of issue rather than expiry on every December 31 is the other addition in this law, which Mr Kayondo said was one of the contentious provisions of the previous law.

Licensing act
The Trade Licensing Amendment Act, 2015 does not only wipe away multiple payments but also widens revenue sources for authorities. This is evident with licencing of trade in services as opposed to only trade in goods as it was the case since 1960.

Benteke goal downs Sunderland

Belgian striker Benteke celebrates his winner against Sunderland on Wednesday night. Photo by AFP 

London- Christian Benteke was on target again as Liverpool won 1-0 at Sunderland and made a significant impact on the Premier League as they moved up four places and alongside Manchester United.

Benteke’s goal had earned them a 1-0 win over Leicester City to end a poor run of form by Jurgen Klopp’s team and he claimed the decider at the Stadium of Light as Sunderland slipped to their fifth successive defeat.

It was an encouraging win for Liverpool, but Sunderland are in serious trouble and in danger of being cast adrift.
They rarely threatened to find a way past Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet and Liverpool could have scored more, notably when Benteke went clear in the closing stages.

The goal he scored came only 22 seconds into the second-half after an opening 45 minutes when Roberto Firmino had been involved in a one-man attempt to put Liverpool ahead and improve his disappointing record in front of goal.

The Brazilian had scored only once in 21 appearance, hitting the target in Liverpool’s excellent 4-1 victory at Manchester City. He has still contributed much to Liverpool’s season, but it represented a poor return for a midfield with a licence to join in attacks.

Firmino certainly looked in the mood to punish them further, particularly in the first-half when he went close to beating keeper Vito Mannone on three occasions.

His first involvement gave no hint of the problems he was to cause Sunderland as his heavy touch deprived him of a chance created by a smart pass from his fellow-Brazilian Philippe Coutinho.

For the rest of the opening half it was Mannone v Firmino, with the Sunderland keeper coming out on top.

Mannone, who had already saved a 30-yard effort from Nathaniel Clyne, produced a remarkable effort when he went to his left to touch Firmino’s 25th minute shot against the post.

The second save came 11 minutes later when Mannone reacted well to a header from Firmino, preventing controversy since Sunderland were adamant that Clyne had handled before he cross from the right touchline.

Firmino was frustrated again when he was the beneficiary of a well-worked corner routine. He was left in space for a fierce shot that was goalbound before it failed to find its way through a crowded area.

Sunderland could offer little in response to Liverpool’s first-half authority, although striker Jermain Defoe did give Mignolet a rare moment of concern with a 15th minute shot that the Liverpool keeper handled well.

Benteke slid in his goal immediately after the restart after Clyne’s ball was played into his path by Adam Lallana.

It was his sixth goal against Sunderland – more than against any other Premier League club – and the 38th league goal they have conceded this season and Liverpool must have sensed they could add to that miserable record.

Sunderland manager Sam Allardyce’s decision to sign Lorient centre-back Lamine Kone during the transfer window already looked like a timely move, but the loss of another defender means Kone is likely to go straight into the side when he arrives.

2015: Silverbacks, Gazelles competed at AfroBasket

Silverbacks power forward Stanley Ocitti attempts a jumper against Central African Republic at the AfroBasketball Championships held in Tunisia last year. Ocitti was impressive. Courtesy photo 

Kampala- As Silverbacks captain Stephen Omony stated, qualification to the AfroBasket championships should be made a habit rather than a one off.

For 2015 though, the country can celebrate a hugely successful year in which the Silverbacks and Gazelles, the national men and women’s basketball teams all took part in the continental championship.

This was in addition to the ladies’ club side KCCA who returned to the continental competition for the first time since 2008 while City Oilers narrowly missed out on qualification after a narrow loss to Egyptian side Gezira.

“My conclusion will be to appreciate the opportunity to be among the 16 top teams in Africa and people should watch out for Uganda next time,” Omony said after the men’s tournament in August. The results were not as fruitful, the Silverbacks bowing out with a 1-4 record.

The only victory came in the 72-64 classification game triumph over Zimbabwe to finish 15th at the 16 team tournament.

There were some decent individual performances on the other hand particularly from Omony who averaged 17.5 points against powerhouses Tunisia and Nigeria before completing with 12.5 points in four games.

Stanley Ochitti too certainly left with an enhanced reputation, the power forward averaging a team high 14.6 points in five games.

The women’s team fared slightly better finishing 10th out of 12 nations with a 2-5 record and had Peace Proscovia pick a tournament high 12.7 rebounds with Muhayimina Namuwaya coming fifth in the same category.

At the Fiba Africa Club Champions Cup, KCCA Leopards also finished 11th out of 12 teams with Namuwaya averaging nine rebounds, the second best figures at the tournament that concluded at the start of this month in Angola.

They qualified for this tournament after finishing second at the Zone V championship following a 73-62 loss to Tanzania’s Berco Stars in the final.

In the men, City Oilers improved from their third placed finish at the same tournament in Rwanda but still fell agonizingly short, 75-73 to Gezira in the final.

Oilers win league
The consolation for that disappointment was picking up a third successive National League title after a 4-3 series triumph over the UCU Canons.

The feat for the five-year-old club saw them become only the second side to complete a three-peat after Falcons between 2002-04. This followed an 8-67 win in the deciding Game Seven of the Fuba- Pepsi League playoff final.

Ben Komakech woke from his slumber to score 14 points while compatriots Kami Kabange added 18 and Landry Ndikumana 11 to deny Nicholas Natuhereza’s side a first league triumph in their 11 year history.

In the women,Judith Nansobya scored 19 points in game six to help the UCU Lady Canons hold off a late KCCA leopards charge and win their best of seven series 4-2.

Road safety tax is unnecessary, burden to taxpayers

I wish to differ with the government’s plan to introduce road safety tax as reported in Daily Monitor of December 30.
It is said the funds will be used to sponsor road safety campaigns. This move is unrealistic.

This is taking advantage of taxpayers who are vulnerable to tax creations and are soft targets for revenue collection as if there are no virgin avenues for revenue base.

The tax burden on motorists is already big and biting and yet the government wants to create this uncalled for tax. If the said campaigns help to reduce accidents then they should be financed under the budgetary provisions of the line ministries.

If the government intends to raise revenue, it should attract more investors to the country rather than over tax vehicle owners.
My advice to the government is to prioritise enforcement of the Traffic and Road Safety Act 1998 by the Uganda Police Force.
The police need to rise up to the occasion and decisively apprehend traffic offenders otherwise campaigns alone cannot be effective.
Richard Elwelu,
Kampala

Vehicles to pay for city access

A man carries goods from a truck in Owino Market, Kampala, yesterday. Under the new law, such vehicles will each pay Shs1.2 million annually to operate in the city. PHOTO BY STEPHEN WANDERA 

Kampala-Commercial vehicles will have to part with more money to operate in Kampala capital city when a new tax introduced by government comes into force.

Truck, bus, taxi, special hire drivers and motorcyclists will each part with an already computed amount payable either on a monthly, quarterly or annual basis.

The consideration is the tonnage and sitting capacity of the vehicle; the more the tonnage and sitting capacity, the higher the charge.

The new tax comes into force after Parliament in July assented to the Kampala Capital City Commercial Road Users’ Regulations, 2015. The law stipulates that any commercial vehicle in Kampala must have paid for a sticker for operating within or transiting through the city.

Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA), however, said private cars that are not commercial are exempted at the moment.

“Currently, private cars are not included. We are still working out modalities to see how to include none commercial private vehicles that use the city roads,” Mr Sam Sserunkuuma, the KCCA revenue director, said.

Plan for private vehicles
Mr Sserunkuuma hinted that the authority will introduce a tax on all vehicles entering or leaving Kampala once alternative means such as cable cars, flyovers and underground trains are introduced in the city.

He explained that the new policy will be implemented in phases. He said the first phase kicked off with the introduction of the payment of Shs120, 000 monthly levies on commuter taxis.

“We realised that it was unfair to have such taxes applying to commuter taxis. In the second phase, we are registering special hires and buses,” Mr Sserunkuuma said on Wednesday.

Under the new order, vehicles exceeding four tonnes will be restricted from entering, moving or parking in the city’s central business district. A Shs4 million fine will be slapped on any vehicle impounded for breaking the above directive.

However, passenger service vehicles such as buses and vans have been granted special access to the city centre despite being of high tonnage.

The regulations also prohibit the loading and off-loading of a vehicle in the central business district, a common practice that leads to a build-up of traffic in the city.

Commercial drivers are now required to display a route chart for their daily vehicle movements while taxi touts are also forbidden from shouting while calling passengers.

According to the regulations, commercial motorcycles commonly known as boda-boda will be charged Shs90,000 annually and other goods vehicles will annually be charged Shs450,000. Big trucks will pay Shs2.3m annually while buses will part with Shs1.8m every year.

Mr Charles Muhangi, the director of the Horizon Coaches, expressed discomfort with the new taxes.
“We already pay charges at border posts and to the various councils and bodies managing the various car parks where we load and offload passengers,” Mr Muhangi said.

Uganda seeks Shs270b for Kapchorwa-Suam road to boost regional trade

During the rainy season, vehicles get stuck at Kapchorwa-Suam road. Sometimes traders use donkeys to transport produce. FILE PHOTO 

By Stellar Murumba & Mark Keith Muhumuza
Posted 


Friday, January 1 

2016 at 

02:00

In Summary

Produce. The region produces maize and barley among others

Kenya and Uganda plan to build another corridor to boost trade between the two East African countries.

The proposed road on the Ugandan side will start in Kapchorwa Town through to Bukwo and Suam before joining the Endebess – Kitale – Eldoret bypass roads project in Kenya.
The Suam bridge forms the boundary of Kenya and Uganda in Bukwo District.

Uganda National Roads Authority and the Kenya National Highways Authority are seeking funds from the African Development Bank (AfDB) for the project.

The Ugandan section of the road will cost $80m (Shs270b) with funding expected to come from the Government of Uganda and African Development Bank (AfDB).

The Ugandan section, according to UNRA, will be about 73 kilometres and will be upgraded from the current gravel to tarmac, which will be a relief to various farmers around the Sebei Sub-region.

“It is a very sensitive and vital corridor linking the productive sub-regions of Bugisu, Karamoja and Sebei. It is also another eastern gateway to the neighbouring country of Kenya,” says Eng Joseph Otim, the director road maintenance at UNRA.
The regions are known for the production of maize, barley, sorghum and coffee, among others.

In the rainy season, the road often gets flooded and denies access to goods that could cross from Uganda to Kenya.
“The 35 kilometre of the road on the Kenyan side, and 73 kilometre stretch on Ugandan side is in a poor state which renders it impassable during rainy seasons. AfDB has promised to redesign the road,” Trans Nzoia county governor Patrick Khaemba, told the Business Daily in Kenya. Mr Khaemba said that residents at the Kenyan border are spending a lot of money in Uganda and if the AfDB approves the funding to tarmac the Kitale- Suam highway, economic activities would be spurred.

The AfDB has already completed resettlement plans for the entire road. Additionally, environment and social impact assessment have already been completed.

“The multinational project will support regional integration and cross-border trade with Uganda and Kenya at Suam. The project will contribute to improving road transportation and trade facilitation along the Suam border to foster transport linkage with Kenya, Uganda, South Sudan and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC),” reads the Environment and Social Impact Assessment for the road project.
Currently, procurement for a contractor is ongoing and, according to UNRA, road works will commence in the 2016/17 financial year.

People to be displaced
According to the Resettlement Action Plan (RAP) for the Ugandan section, it is estimated that 2,564 people will be affected by the loss of land and their structures.

The greatest impact will be felt by subsistence and smallholder farmers. The plan also indicates that people who are the rightful owners of the land, under Ugandan land laws, will be entitled to compensation.

“The assets that will be compensated include; loss of physical assets, crops and revenue or income resulting from economic displacement or physical relocation, whether these losses are permanent or temporary,” the RAP reads.
The total cost of compensation and resettlement is projected to be about Shs30b and will be incurred by the government of Uganda.

The numbers
Shs30 billion
The total cost of compensation and resettlement that will be incurred by government.

73 kilometres
The Ugandan section of the proposed highway.

what resolutions can I make to improve my finances this coming year 2016?

Dear Sir, what resolutions can I make to improve my finances this coming year 2016?
Well it is that exciting time of the year again when we say good bye to an old year and usher in a new one. Many times people make all kinds of resolutions at this point with great optimism for what the New Year will bring. The danger however lies in turning this into a ritual of resolution making and breaking only to wait for the next New Year to repeat the cycle.

A good resolution must be clear, measurable and backed up with a credible plan to execute it as well as firm commitment towards the desired goals. If you say you want to be financially stable this year, do you want to double your income? Or reduce your expenses by half? The resolution must also have a time frame and need not be just a year. If your resolution is to become debt free, this could take three years to execute.

Many times people will have to make considerations to match resolutions with their lifecycle stages, for example, if you are retiring this year, then your resolutions should be skewed towards life after retirement, if you are getting married you need resolutions that speak to a home, if you are changing jobs you might want to plan for new transport means.

Some examples include; to save 10% equivalent of all my expenses this year, or to save 15% of all my income for the next five years starting this year, or not to borrow at all for consumption this year. Ultimately, you only get one New Year each year so it is important for you to tap into the energy and the hope for future achievement that the New Year brings. Happy 2016.
If you’re have any queries, TYPE UAP (leave space) Message (Send to 6933)
The writer is the corporate sales manager at UAP Insurance.

‘Big Three’ back in golf as Woods wilts

US whizkid Speith had a dream season in which he won two golf majors to become world number one. Together with Jason Day and Rory McIlroy, the three represent the future of the game. PHOTO BY AFP 

Paris- A watershed year in golf saw the emergence of a new “Big Three”, filling the vacuum left by the fast-fading Tiger Woods.

Jordan Spieth, Jason Day and Rory McIlroy ended the year on the world rankings podium, in that order, and their rivalry is set to shine brightly in the new year.

Spieth, at just 22, is the youngest of the three and, for much of the year gone by, he was the story.

He won the Masters for his first major title in April and followed up by taking the US Open two months later. He then set sail for St Andrews with talk of the never-before achieved calendar-year Grand Slam starting to dominate sporting pages.
He came agonisingly close to becoming just the second player, after Ben Hogan in 1953, to win the first three majors of the year, but a bogey at the 17th, the Road Hole, saw him miss out by one stroke on a three-man playoff won by Zach Johnson.

Spieth then lost the world number one spot he had taken from McIlroy in June to the then 27-year-old Australian Day, who won four tournaments from late July to mid-September, including his first major at the PGA Championship.

The Texan though regained the number one spot with his win in the closing Tour Championship, clinching the FedEx Cup into the bargain.

McIlroy in contrast had a mixed bag of a year, failing to add to his haul of major titles which remains at four.

He only had himself to blame after being forced to miss the defence of his British Open crown because of an ankle ligament injury picked up during an impromptu football kickabout with friends.

But the 26-year-old from Northern Ireland finished the year strongly, a superb showing in Dubai in November giving him the DP World Tour Championship title and the Race to Dubai European Tour crown.

Spieth says he fully expects himself to win at least one major championship in 2016, but he believes it might be too early to put himself and Day up on a pedestal with McIlroy.

“I think for Rory it’s a bit different because he’s been consistent for a number of years now,” he said.

“It’s still so early in my career so it’s hard for me to compare to others. But what an exciting year it was for golf, with so many young players playing so well.

“If Rory was healthy for the whole year he would have made a bigger impact than he was able to make in a shorter season.
“And then with what Rickie Fowler did this season, breaking through with three wins and Jason and myself it was exciting.”
McIlroy says he has learned a lesson from the football injury mishap and that he is energised by the challenge presented by such as Spieth and Day.

But his current focus is very much on the Masters at Augusta National in April where he will attempt, for the second straight year, to become just the sixth man to win all four of golf’s majors.

“It’s always going to be there until I get to put a green jacket on my back,” he said. “It’s obviously the first real goal of the year is to try and get ready for the Masters and be in as good a shape as possible going in there.

Minister defends government on Shs35b women’s cash

Jinja. The state minister for Gender and Social Development has dismissed claims that government timed the release earlier this month of Shs35 billion to empower women in order to boost ruling party campaigns ahead of next year’s polls.
In an interview with Daily Monitor in Jinja on Sunday, Ms Rukia Nakadama said the money is not an inducement to make the populace vote for President Museveni and the NRM.

Earlier while addressing a workshop of trainers of trainers for the programme at the Jinja Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) in Jinja, the minister said the special programme was designed after realizing that vulnerable women had been missing out in earlier programmes targetting special interest groups.

“The youth and people with disabilities have been having special programmes like Youth Livelihood and Disability Grant but women had been left out yet they are equally poor, therefore we decided to come up with a programme for them to better their lives,” she explained.
The minister said the money will be channeled to beneficiaries through her ministry and district community development officers.
She said the beneficiaries of this grant will first receive training in basic business and financial management before they can receive the money.

editorial@ug.nationmedia.com

Police tightens security at Busia, Malaba border

Tororo. Police has put the border points at Busia and Malaba in eastern Uganda under tight security ahead of the New Year festivities in order to counter any security threats from the Somali extremists, the al-Shabaab.
The Bukedi regional police spokesperson, Mr Michaeal Odongo, said police has increased deployment in collaboration with other security agencies to handle any security threat.

“Police and other security agencies will not take any threats for granted. These border points have been put under tight surveillance. People should not just leave it for the police alone but work closely with security organs and report any strange people who may take advantage of this season to cause havoc,” Mr Odongo said.

He urged owners of entertainment places to put up security measures to check wrong doers.
“Police will be moving from place to place during its operations to monitor such places,” he said.
Mr Odongo warned people against burning tyres as a sign of ushering in the New Year, saying it paralyses traffic and is itself part of insecurity.
editorial@ug.nationmedia.com

I love speed and overtaking

Eddie Yawe is a hands-on man who does not mind doing personal repairs on his car. Photo by Roland D Nasasira. 

By Roland D. Nasasira
Posted 


Thursday, December 31  

2015 at 

02:00

What is the type of your car?
It is a Toyota Land Cruiser V8.

Was it your first car?
No. I have driven a Nissan Gloria, Nissan Maxma, Lexus and a Range Rover Classic.

What is the speed limit of your car?
It can go up to 220km per hour.

What is the fastest speed you have driven at?
Sometime back I drove at 170km/hour.

Wow. Is that not over speeding?
It is but I had nothing to do. On normal days when I speed, I do 120km per hour.

Did you buy it locally from the bond or you imported it?
I imported it through a car dealer from Japan early this year.

How much did you buy it?
I bought it at Shs192m, including the costs of importing and taxes.

What is its engine size?
It’s a 4.8cc cylinder engine car.

How much do you spend on fuel in a week?
I am not sure. I just fill the tank and when it runs out, I refuel. I never take time to calculate how much I spend on fuel on a weekly basis.

What mechanical issues have you experienced with this car?
None that I know of yet considering it is barely a year old.

Where do you service it from?
I used to service it at Mandela’s garage but these days I do servicing at Shell Malindi.

Do you ever personally fix the car?
Yes, if it is something minor like changing the battery.

Can you change a car tyre?
Yes. There was a time when I had a puncture when I was going to church with my family. When I checked the car boot, I realised that the spanner and other tools for changing the tyre were missing. I jumped on boda boda, went home picked the tools, changed the tyre and proceeded to church.

What never misses from your car?
Extra clothes.

Why do you carry them?
I’m a performing artiste and anything can happen when I’m on the road. It’s not good to wear stage costumes when running personal businesses. Given my political career, I also have to dress decently. I also sometimes go to the farm to do some farming and need to carry farm wear.

What does Mutebile’s reappointment mean?

Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile, the Governor of the Central Bank, has been reappointed to a fourth term. The Constitution of Uganda provides that the Governor and his deputy are eligible for reappointment but does not specify the number of times this can happen.

As such, no succession plan is in place at the Central Bank. If one exists, none has been presented to the public or the markets.

In the short-term, the pros of Mr Mutebile’s reappointment are there. Uganda’s economy since 2011 has oscillated between sideways and decline.

The disruptions in Uganda’s economy in short order have been decline in remittances after the global recession (2008-2010), followed by donor exit in the aftermath of the 2011 elections.

After 2011, the domestic economy has also been hit by a number of major uncertainties; political uncertainty, specifically the unresolved question of political transition, unstable commodity prices and regional political unrest.

Between 2014 and 2015, these factors have been compounded by global economic trends, including a slowdown that marked a natural end of an economic cycle and prolonged anxiety in world markets of delayed tightening of the supply of cheap money since 2008.

The last two years have seen two developments; the fall in crude oil prices – a major contributor to Uganda’s prospective resource envelope. Low cost producers and the world majors have not reacted to falling prices but are producing more to maintain market share.

In 2016, two new players are going to hit the global market: Iran, which is shaking off a sanctions regime, and the United States where Congress recently voted to authorise oil exports to shore up rising domestic oil production.

Unlike conventional drilling operations, fracking in the United States is a much more fragmented low-cost production, allowing wells to be turned on and off at will.

It is Canada up north that has been hit more, shale oil wells are expensive to drill and the failure of Keystone, the pipeline dream to transport crude across continental America at the same time, have been hardly welcome.

Mr Mutebile, long associated with the IMF-World Bank regime, has been strong on the gas, raising interest rates.

A high cost of money and its effect on business can only do “wonders” to Uganda’s high unemployment rate. Under IMF protection, Uganda has been able to get away from publishing an unemployment rate or setting a minimum wage.

For a country with a rising youthful workforce, this can only be a disaster. The Governor, to his credit, has spoken out on government’s fiscal profligacy. His deputy Louis Kasekende has spoken of the failure by government to articulate and implement an industrial policy.

Policies such as free hoes and other embarrassments are a response to the collapse of collateral demand in many parts of Uganda. Fortunately, the El Nino cycle has kept the cost of food cheap even though families are obviously consuming less and the intensity of the rain cycles has not been good to people farming annual crops.

Lastly, the Governor will have to start doing something about the structural lopsidedness of the economy. Kampala’s contribution to economic output and tax revenues is now at 60 per cent and 70 per cent respectively.

Find it, keep it: Tips on finding a partner in 2016

Be developmental
Gloria Batuta, an administrator at Smsone, says if she happens to get into a relationship, she will endeavour to be as developmental as possible. “My friends told me that men want women with great minds and developmental ideas but not just dependents for everything. They also want a woman who doesn’t entirely depend on him,” she says.

She hopes to achieve this by once in a while paying for their bills when they go out and advising him on how to spend money wisely rather than partying all the time. Batuta hopes that by doing this, the lucky man will never let her go.

Give him space
Though Diana Nkajuugo, a radio personality in Mbarara, is not searching, she advises whoever wants to find and keep a man in the new year to let him have his privacy.

“Men are so secretive when it comes to certain issues such as phones, wallets and other stuff. Don’t be picky, give him some space and do not cross certain boundaries. Never check in his phone or wallets. If he gets to know about it, the relationship will definitely be over.”
Be yourself
Diane Mbabazi, a professional photographer, says women should drop the act and be yourself if you want to keep that man. She describes this as being natural.

“Use less hair products, don’t wear crazy make-up. You don’t have to wear makeup all the time lest he will never know the real you and may be scared off when he finally does,” she says.

She adds that men like to see you smart but they prefer that you be smart in your natural look. Unless you are going out, a simple lip balm is enough. After all, is not a relief for your skin to also be free?

Attend social functions
Sometimes you may have to get out of your comfort zone and spread your wings. Go out and socialise, who knows, your prince charming could be out there waiting for you.

Tina Irabu, a businesswoman ,points out going out with friends and attending business meetings as some of the strategies that can help. But she quickly cautions that the places you visit will determine the kind of man you will get.

Sighting from her example, she says, “For instance, I am looking for someone funny, kind, straight forward, financially stable and hardworking so business trips are my target not village parties.”

After getting him, she advises that you take time to know his likes and dislikes and become friends with his friends. “No man wants to see a girl get rude to his friend. Just like we would stick up for our girlfriend, men too stick up for their male friend too. Besides, it is the friends to tell you more about him,” Irabu explains.

Go to church
Marcela Miji, a boutique owner in the city centre says places of worship such as churches and mosques can be good avenues for humble and down-to-earth men. She says men in such are places are more genuine because they do not only do things to please man but also their creator.

So, frequent such places this year. When she gets him, Miji says that she will be honest with him by telling him her past and future aspirations.

Appreciate his hobbies
Rather than criticise or discourage him from enjoying his hobbies such as football, Miji advises you accompany him to a football pitch or bar. “If he is a football fanatic, then I will go and watch a game with him. With this, he will appreciate the effort I am putting in and not resist a girl that takes a genuine interest in his hobbies,” she affirms.

Visit bars and dating sites
Evelyn Nandyose, a mobile money agent says her interest is to date a whiteman so next year, she will visit bars and similar hangouts where they hang out.

Giving her time didn’t mean getting married

I am not in the habit of attending parties to which I am not invited. But my housemate seems to have no problems with that, especially with all these end of year parties.

He is literally jumping from one party to the next, most of which he does not even know whose party it is. For him, as long as there is music, he feels he has a right to be there. That is exactly what happened.

We were headed for a party, hosted by some girl we both know, as we drove past an apartment block, we saw a bevy of well dressed young ladies walking into an apartment. We parked outside for a few minutes and confirmed that there was a party in that apartment.

The ladies that walked in revealed that this could be a more interesting party than the one we were headed for. Naturally, my friend suggested we drop in for a ‘look around’, and if it did not look interesting, we would head off. This time, I was in total agreement.

We walked in, got handed drinks immediately, and invited to feel at home. I walked around to familiarise myself with the place and the people. I could only recognise a few common faces, the kind that seem to be in every place that has loud music. This, however, was to change in a shortwhile.

The music went off, someone started talking, thanking people for coming over to celebrate this very special occasion.
It was then we began to realise the occasion we had gate crashed. The emcee kept on talking about things such as engagement party and launch of wedding meetings.

So, it was some lovey dovey couple kicking off the New Year in love and commitment. Nice! The engaged guy came out first.

I had never seen the guy before. Then the lady came out, and for this one, I knew. Very well. Extremely well, because you see, she was my girlfriend.

We had never really broken up, and in my heart of hearts, I still held the hope that one day we were going to resolve our differences, make up and settle down. She was the one for me, I was not willing to let her get away. And yet here she was getting engaged to some guy!

When Tracy said our relationship was not working out, what I thought she meant was that she wanted to settle down, and yet I did not seem ready.

I could not think of settling down when the company I was working with looked like it might fold any minute, and the small business I had just started was not really working out.

She assured me that all that didn’t matter, what was important was that we had each other. But I did not really feel it the way she was putting it.

So, being frank, I told her settling down was not something I had in my priorities at that moment. She interpreted this as; ‘I am not serious about you’, and it was not long before we started drifting apart.

At some point, she informed me she needed sometime to clear her head. And foolishly, I gave her the time. Trust me, there are always guys lurking in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to snap up your woman.

Me giving her time to clear her head didn’t mean she could go and get married to the next guy who propositioned her! Myself, I was not even dating anyone else! I had even called her a few days ago to wish her a Happy New year, and asked if we could talk. And she had not told me anything, as if getting engaged was not something she felt I ought to know.