{UAH} KCCA mayors, councillors boycott Musisi meeting

Kampala- Kampala division mayors and a section of urban councillors snubbed a closed door meeting called by Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) Executive Director Jennifer Musisi on Thursday.

The meeting was to deliberate on a five-year strategic plan for KCCA and all elected political leaders at the authority were invited.

Although Kampala has five divisions, each represented by a division Mayor at KCCA, only Kampala Central Division Mayor, Mr Geoffrey Nyakana, attended the meeting but he also left shortly after it opened.

"Everything is just a problem, the institution is dysfunctional, and its managers have no management etiquette. They (KCCA technical wing) come and want to tell you what they want to do instead of what we the people's representatives have collected from the electorate.

I had to leave and find other crucial things to do," said Mr Nyakana in an interview, Friday.
Nakawa division Mayor, Mr Moses Kalumba, said he did not attend the meeting because it was "a mere workshop."

"I'm the speaker of my division council, how do I sit in a workshop to deliberate on issues that Musisi wants to endorse as views of our people? Workshops do not make policies and decisions for KCCA. It is the authority called by the Lord Mayor that is supposed to discuss such matters. We are really fed up with what the technical team is doing," said Mr Kalumba.

Ms Joyce Ssebugwawo, the Lubaga division Mayor, also did not attend the meeting, although her deputy was present. But issues to be discussed were for elected political leaders.

Dr Ian Clarke, the Makindye division Mayor, did not attend the meeting nor was he represented.
Attempts to get a comment from Ms Ssebugwawo and Mr Clarke on why they did not attend the meeting were futile as calls to their known phone lines went unanswered.

Councillors angry
Youth councillor Aida Nakuya said she was disturbed by the fact that KCCA presented them a plan without giving the councillors copies of it.

"Besides, the executive director's June 4th letter, invited us for a presentation on a five-year strategic plan at Imperial Royale hotel. How then did madam Musisi change the meeting to a stakeholders' consultative workshop on a draft proposal of the strategic plan," Ms Nakuya said.

Deputy Lord Mayor Sulaiman Kidandala said: "KCCA as an institution has structures through which development proposals undergo before the authority approves them for presentation to parliament and cabinet. But Ms Musisi has circumvented all these structures and wants us to act like rubberstamps, we cannot be party to that," he said.

Makindye West councillor, Mr Allan Sewanyana described the meeting as illegitimate.
"You cannot give us a plan which did not come from the people we represent and you want us to endorse it for you as if the meeting is for the KCCA authority," said Mr Sewanyana.

Lord Mayor, Erias Lukwago said what transpired was impunity. He called out to Parliament to intervene.
He asked Ms Musisi to respect the rule of law.
All calls to Ms Musisi's phone were diverted to the line of her personal secretary who said her boss was not available for a comment.

fmukisa@ug.nationmedia.com

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