Anger and Confusion have erupted in the leadership of Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) due to budget cuts by the central government as a way of getting funds that will run the Parish Development Model program.
While speaking to journalists on Monday at city hall, the Lord Mayor of Kampala Erias Lukwago noted that in the strategic plan which was passed a few years ago stated that every year KCCA will receive Shs1.5trillion, however the central government has continuously kept on cutting the money.
“Although the minister of Finance has not replied to my letter, our budget has been cut beyond imagination, in other words, a lot of money has been cut. The present budget is Shs601bn. In the first call budget circular we received, it showed that KCCA was to receive Shs441bn however it was reduced to Shs392bn,” Lukwago said.
According to the Lord Mayor, over Shs40bn was cut from funds budgeted to maintain or upgrade Kampala roads.
“When KCCA inquired why the budget was cut yet Kampala is full of poor roads and sewerage and water channels that need to be maintained, they told us that they are soliciting money that will facilitate the program of Parish Development Model. I have kept on telling the central government that KCCA is not going to indulge itself in the circus of choosing between the Parish Development Model and better Kampala roads. Here in KCCA, we have our own priorities and we shall go with that.”
He added that if the government cannot access funds to run the Parish Development Model from elsewhere, it’s the right time to leave it instead of sabotaging operations of other institutions which in turn will benefit Ugandans.
“Fortunately, World Bank has added us some money, initially we had Shs118bn for roads but at least we were given an extra of Shs21bn. Still, this money is not enough because even KCCA’s road fund that is meant to refill the pothole in the roads was reduced from Shs26.5bn to Shs12bn. One will ask if Mr Museveni and his government desiring to see this city developing anymore or?” he asked.
Lukwago further noted that if the government continues to cut their budget, many programs and plans will not be done.
In the same way, the Executive Director of KCCA, Dorothy Kisaka alluded that the present budget will only be able to run the city this year if the funds from the donors have come in.
“We have a lot of things to work upon such as roads, water channels, street lights and traffic lights, we have markets, so in order to increase our money, we sent an appeal to the Minister of Finance to increase our budget. This is the country’s capital city, and to make it look better we need more funding.”
Kisaka added that at least KCCA needs Shs1trillion if the strategic plan of upgrading the city is come to pass which is not likely to happen due to Covid-19 which affected the flow of the country’s revenues. “But we have to accept what has been given to us and move on with the little.”
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