Kampala taxi operators are divided over President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni’s donation to them, with one section raising alarm that the president was duped to promise money to nonexistent SACCOs.
When Museveni visited Kampala down town markets a month ago, he donated Uganda shilling 500 million to the old taxi park SACCO under Kampala Taxi Stages Association (KOTSA). He also promised Uganda shilling 10 million to each small SACCO run by taxi operators. KOTSA is led by Yasin Ssematimba.
But a different group of taxi operators under, Uganda Transport Development Agency (UTRADA), led by Mustafa Mayambala have petitioned the president saying he was duped to inject money in nonexistent SACCOs.
Mayambala told this publication on Monday that they want the president to withdraw the donation or send his intelligence to establish whether the SACCOs exist.
Mayambala says the money will cause more chaos in the taxi industry if it’s released. “Those people, what they did was to deceive the president to just get money. If they are given that money and embezzle it, they will cause more fights in the taxi industry. We have had enough fights,” he said.
In a letter to the president, dated 23rd October, Mayambala said; “the organisers of your visit to the old taxi park stopped most of the taxi drivers, conductors and owners from attending the function.” He says the president should come again to meet genuine taxi operators.
Mayambala says people were hired from other businesses to cheer the president.
He also says bouncers and kifesi were hired by KOTSA to block genuine taxi operators from meeting the president.
KOTSA’s Ssematimba did not pick repeated calls for a comment.
– URN
