Joshua Nahamya,
Mbarara.
It all started on 31 May 2022, when the city council chaired by speaker Bonny Tashobya demanded an executive report to assess the performance of the city since 01st July 2020.
However, the deputy city Mayor, Priscah Mulongo reported that there was some unfinished business that the executive committee had to fix and compile a full report before presenting it to the council.
The council leaders took her piece of message in good faith but tasked the executive to call an extraordinary council to harmonize the report and be present in the next council.
To their dismay, the extraordinary council did not take place and no official executive report was presented during the council meeting on Tuesday.
This annoyed most of the councilors in attendance that tasked the deputy mayor to avail them with the formal executive report.
Verbally, Mulongo read the summarized executive report showing what the city council has managed to achieve during the financial year 2021/2022.
The verbal communication annoyed the councilors who sparked off chaos asking the speaker to order a formal document showing the performance report of Mbarara ever since it was elevated to a city on 01st July 2020.
“If it’s true the executive report was incorporated, we should be having a report that was supposed to be attached to the one that we have received which we haven’t seen.” Enos Tuhame representing disabled males in the city council
“All these issues would have been ironed out if we had had an extraordinary meeting, analyse and critically be guided on an informed point of view because there are a number of documents we asked to be availed to us like the agreements pertaining the purchase and procurement of market lands” Ben Twahirwa representing the workers added
After availing the detailed performance report, the speaker got shocked to find that out of 130 resolutions; only four were implemented by the executive committee.
“I have 126 resolutions of this council that have not been worked on what have been worked on; it’s just four that have been worked on. When we are to be assessed, it means that we come here, sit and deliberate and go but nothing is done on ground” Tashobya said
The angry councilors headed by Muhammad Byansi representing the Kakoba division recommended the speaker adjourn the council allowing the executive to work on unimplemented resolutions first.
“Mr. Speaker if you love this august house, you should stop this council and they first go and implement our resolutions because people on ground expect us to deliver services but surprisingly as their representatives we are also here lamenting,” said Muhammad
Baryomunsi representing the Biharwe division said “This is the second time making the extraordinary council fail to take place why? If you fail to implement there is a word called censor, and there is another one called impeachment so don’t take us for granted”.
Ronald Taremwa, the chairperson finance committee, appealed to the councilors to carry out an audit of the resolutions instead of rejecting the ongoing council session.
“we can have an audit of the council resolutions that we passed to see how many were implemented, what are those that are not implemented, the reasons and then we see how they can be implemented instead of calling off council sitting” Taremwa suggested
Going by the majority councilors’ decision, the speaker adjourned the council to allow the executive to implement the earlier passed resolutions.
“I thought you were going to apologise and request for more time to work on these resolutions but if you stand up and say that the 126 resolutions are not part of the people of Mbarara as a minister of finance it means you are not fair to the people of Mbarara,” Tashobya said
The undone resolutions are many and this is not casino hall where we should keep coming here dance and go back not results I have adjourned this council, he further directed.
“We talked about this all of these things to be done but now we are lamenting every day and again. For that matter the executive and the city clerk, you go and work on our resolutions and present them to us, and council is adjourned for the next session” Tashobya said
Some of the unimplemented resolutions include; failure to demolish illegal structures in the city, failure to open up all roads connecting to the city, failure to purchase land where to allocate some of the city markets, improper awarding of tenders, and land grabbing among others.
The deputy mayor denied council allegations accusing the executive to have failed to implement 90% of the council resolutions.
“We should stop the blame game and as the executive we are working, if you go to infrastructure, when you look at the roads but again when you hear some people saying that the executive has done nothing I don’t understand”
Assy Abireba, the city clerk Mbarara said “I want to allay the fears of this council that for us we are here to ensure that this council doesn’t get bad litigations where people will take you to court and the council pays heavily” Abirebe said
He says that “If there is that urge that the sitting must be there I think we can organize it bearing in mind that it will be the only extra ordinary council in the financial year 2022/23 because there is no money”.
“With Kikona market, as council, we don’t have powers to run the market and I cannot go ahead to sign the contract before the contract’s committee pronounce itself” Abirebe added
In attendance was also the Mbarara City Woman MP, Rita Atukwatsa who thanked the councilors for discussing matters of accountability.
“This gives me confidence for raising questions of accountability which are critical that the tax payers’ money which comes from the people who give us votes is well accounted,” Atukwatsa said
