Kabale — In a decisive move aimed at restoring order and justice in public markets, Hon. Balaam this morning visited Kabale Central Market to inspect the facility and listen directly to vendors over long-standing grievances.
The visit is part of his week-long anti-corruption tour of the Kigezi sub-region under the “Expose the Corrupt” campaign, which started in Rukiga District on Thursday where seven district officials were arrested. The minister is scheduled to cover Kabale, Rubanda, Kisoro, Kanungu, Rukungiri and Rubirizi.
During an open engagement with hundreds of traders, vendors told the Minister that the biggest problem killing their businesses is the entrenched system of market landlords and middlemen.
According to vendors, individuals who are not genuine low-income traders secured lock-ups and stalls during allocation and now rent them out at exorbitant prices, between Shs 150,000 to Shs 400,000 per month, while the official council dues are much lower. Many genuine vendors said they have been forced to operate on verandas, on streets, or pay double rent to the landlords.
This complaint mirrors what the Minister found last week in Mbarara Central Market, where he declared: “These stalls were built by the government to benefit low-income earners who are trying to earn an honest living, not landlords who grab space only to rent it out at inflated rates” and “If you know that you are a landlord, your time has ended today.”
In a firm response that drew loud cheers from the crowd, Hon. Balaam declared that there will be no landlords in Kabale Central Market.
“This market was not built for landlords. It was built by President Museveni for the poor vendor, the tomato seller, the matooke mother,” he said.
He instructed the Kabale Municipal Town Clerk, the Chief Administrative Officer, and the entire district leadership in charge of markets to immediately start a fresh verification exercise and to award full ownership of shops to all vendors who have been consistently paying rent and operating in the market themselves.
He ordered that:
- All people renting out stalls and lock-ups must vacate.
- The rightful beneficiaries must be the vendors operating the stalls themselves.
- All rent payments must go directly to Kabale City Council, not to middlemen.
The engagement is still ongoing.
