By Kintu Moses
Following the meeting with the leadership of the business community (KACITA, FUTA, etc.), at State House Entebbe on April 17, 2024, the head of State H.E Yoweri Museveni halted other national duties to address the alleged plight of the traders facing resulting from the alleged high taxes and implementation of the Electronic Fiscal Invoice Solution. (EFRIS).
With President Museveni’s faith in the socio-economic transformation of Uganda based on the indigenous business people, he found it significant to extend his thoughts to the majority of the business community in the meeting held recently at Kololo Independence Grounds on May 7, 2024.
Despite the urgent national concerns, the Head of State scheduled adequate time to engage the Business community. He listened to the uproar presented by the business leaders irrespective of the multi-insulting statements, “Watandika ddi okunyigiriza abanaku?” literally translated as“When did you start to suppress the poor” made by Mr. Isa Ssekito and his colleagues sharing the leadership of the business community.
The faces of the traders, some were startled on hearing a likely of such verbal attacks on the person of the President, while others hailed their strong matches boldness. This was a golden opportunity for them to cleanse their reputation following doubting debates regarding their relations with those who thought to suppress the traders.
Applying his all-time rebel abilities (Luwero methods), the old man absorbed all the said keeping sober and penning it down. The agents of the President (Ministers, URA officials, and others) were almost told off taking the microphone due to the circumstances of anger the traders held against them. The Minister for Kampala Hon. Minsa Kabanda in charge of the traders’ trade hub Kampala-Metropolitan area, almost fainted due to the nuclear verbal attacks from the wild traders.
In his address, he (the President) thoroughly explained to the traders the Taxation Policy in the best language they could understand. He emphasized the need for patriotism to achieve the socio-economic transformation agenda which the opposition leadership is failing by purposely misinforming the peasant traders about how the government is not for their greater good and intends to see them off their businesses in favor of the foreigners.
Using facts, Ssabalwanyi demystified the falsehood by outlining some of the 350 domestic companies and their proprietors benefiting from the government support to local traders at Namanve. The crowd was shocked to learn the truth despite expressing the thirst to hear the President directing a rise on the threshold of Value Added Tax to traders with a turnover of Ugx 1 billion, banning EFRIS, reducing the USD 3.5 levied per kilogram on imported textiles.
It is rare for a leader to take responsibility to ensure that the stakeholders in the business chain understand their role in the journey to achieve socio-economic transformation. I saw a Museveni re-playing his youthful days of leadership after a successful liberation war in 1986, by holding a chalk to teach his subordinates about the objectives of the Movement.
In conclusion, I commend the Manager of the Office of the National Chairman – NRM Hajjat Hadijah Namyalo Uzeiye for being visionary in advocating for President Museveni’s extended leadership under her popular slogan Jajja Tova Ku Main 2026 because leaders who give priority to their domestic business people ensuring inclusive problem solving, sharing a collective agenda for socio-economic transformation are rare. She also initially enabled the first meeting of the Traders with the Head of State at State House, Entebbe, which is yielding to this process’s success.
I am assured that, in the last meeting set for June 20, 2024, the President is to come up with sustainable solutions to the plight of the business community. He noted the weaknessesin the Uganda Revenue Authority, Ministry of Finance Planning and Economic Development, and other Ministers acting as his agents. Thanks to the traders for emptying their worries to their esteemed leader and being confident that the leader of the Movement Ssabalwanyi HE Yoweri Kaguta Museveni is still at the helm to achieve the socio-economic transformation agenda of Uganda.
Kintu Moses is the Communications and Public Relations Officer at the Office of the NRM National Chairman – ONC Kyambogo.
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