Raphael Magyezi, the Local Government Minister has ordered the arrest of three members who belong to Kabale's new Central Market Allocation Committee on charges of alleged corruption and gross extortion during the space allocation exercise in the market. The arrested individuals were involved in accepting millions of shillings in bribes to allocate stalls and lockups to unidentified individuals and relatives.

 The orders for their arrests came directly from Raphael Magyezi, the Local Government Minister, who travelled to Kabale to address gross corruption allegations. The arrests were made following the findings of an investigative committee led by Ronald Bakak, the Kabale Deputy Resident District Commissioner, along with other officials from the Ministry of Local Government.

The committee's inception which was in January 2023, was prompted by complaints from some vendors accused municipal authorities led by Mayor Emmanuel Sentaro Byamugisha, and Prossy Tuhiriirwe, the Assistant Program Officer in Charge of Community Development in the Ministry of Local Government, of mismanaging the relocation exercise. According to the vendors, the municipal leaders were allegedly involved in accepting bribes ranging from shillings of 2-50 million to allocate stalls and lockups to unknown individuals, civil servants, and even their own relatives.

In response to the growing outcry, Magyezi took decisive action by convening a lengthy meeting with Kabale Municipality authorities and district security officials at a hotel in Kabale. However, recognizing the gravity of the situation after interviewing vendors at the market, he organized an additional meeting in Makanga to hear directly from the affected parties.

During this meeting, 36 vendors came forward and accused municipality officials of being complicit in the alleged extortion activities. The arrested individuals have been identified as Andrew Baija, the Kabale Municipality health inspector, Wilson Agaba, Chairman of the Relocations team, and Alex Muhumuza, a member of the registration team.

Following the meeting, Magyezi promptly ordered the arrests of Baija, Muhumuza, and Agaba as they were giving contradictory statements while attempting to defend themselves against the accusations. Despite Akankwasa being on the run, Magyezi vowed to bring him to justice. Additionally, he declared that Byamugisha and other officials associated with the Ministry of Local Government, who oversaw the allocation exercise, would undergo an investigation to determine their involvement.

Disgruntled vendors shared their frustrations during the meeting. They expressed their dismay at being left without lockups and stalls despite having operated in the old market before its demolition for the construction of a modern one.

 Magyezi, during the same function, shared the findings from a committee that he had established to investigate the relocation process. He also announced a new relocation and verification exercise for vendors in order to guarantee that the market is occupied by rightful occupants.

The arrested committee members were whisked away to Kabale central police station, where they would await further legal proceedings. The minister's actions have been hailed by vendors and other authorities, instilling a renewed sense of hope in the ongoing process.

The construction of the Kabale Central Market was undertaken by Chong Chong International Construction (CICO), a Chinese Company, under the World Bank-funded Markets and Agricultural Trade Improvement Program. The once hopeful promise of progress and modernization now lies entangled in the dark web of deceit, leaving the people of Kabale to grapple with the aftermath of this unfortunate saga.

JOB NAMANYA