Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Peter Sserugo
Published on 2024-02-02 14:28:24
The Minister of Works and Transport, Gen Katumba Wamala, has issued a directive to both the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) and Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) to immediately remove all vendors who are operating businesses along the shoulders and walkways of the city roads. He emphasized that these businesses are being conducted illegally and urged the relevant authorities to take decisive actions against them.
Citing Section 65(1)(e) of the Roads Act, 2019, he stated that anyone carrying out a business activity on the shoulder, sidewalk, or road reserve of a public road is committing an offense and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding one hundred sixty-eight currency points or imprisonment not exceeding seven years, or both. The Minister made these remarks on Friday while speaking to journalists in Kampala.
He also directed KCCA and UNRA to implement this section of the Roads Act, 2019 using their respective enforcement teams or traffic police where necessary. This directive comes as a response to the interference with the movement of vehicles and pedestrians, encroachment on the road carriageway, and increased incidences of vehicle conflicts and traffic jams caused by the illegal roadside businesses.
Gen Katumba further clarified that the hundreds of vendors who were previously evicted from the roads ahead of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and G77+ China summits should find alternative places to conduct their businesses, as no one will be allowed to operate on the roadsides again.
Supporting the Minister’s directive, the deputy director of KCCA, Eng David Luyimbazi, stated the authority’s commitment to enforcing this directive and initiating operations immediately. He announced that all illegal businesses on the roadsides, drainage channels, and other ungazetted places will not be allowed on the city roads.
In addition to removing illegal roadside businesses, Eng Luyimbazi revealed plans to mark all 445 boda-boda stages in the capital city as part of an initiative to streamline the boda-boda business in Kampala.
It is estimated that close to 3,000 businesses and several boda-boda stages were evicted from the major roads ahead of and during the NAM and G77+ China summits, held in Kampala last month. These actions were taken in preparation for the arrival of delegates attending the summits, and now the government is taking further steps to ensure that such roadside businesses do not reappear and cause disruption to the city’s traffic.
Read the original article on Uganda Monitor
