230 Cars Impounded In Kampala
Jun 10, 2003
OVER 230 vehicles were yesterday impounded in a swoop that disrupted transport for a greater part of the day, triggering off a crisis in the city.
By Steven Candia
& David Muwanga
OVER 230 vehicles were yesterday impounded in a swoop that disrupted transport for a greater part of the day, triggering off a crisis in the city.
The six-hour joint operation by police and Uganda Revenue Authority (URA)officials, targeted motorists who had defaulted paying for licences.
As the URA officials looked out for vehicles without valid road licenses and other relevant documents, the police waved down all those in dangerous mechanical condition or those that had flouted traffic regulations.
Word of the sudden checks went round fast causing drivers of mini buses plying many routes to abandon business and hid their vehicles, sparking off the crisis.
Shrewd mini-bus drivers who remained on the roads cashed in on the operation and hiked fares to the city.
Many passengers had to pay twice the normal fare as they hurried to work in a week that twice started on the wrong note on a public holiday.
Greatly inconvenienced were parents who were returning their children to school for the second term.
Stranded parents and their children plus luggage were a common site in many parts of the city.
Many parents expressed disgust, saying the operation was ill-timed.
“How do they carry out such an operation on a day when children are going back to school?†an irate parent stuck with a her child in Luzira asked.
URA spokesman Christopher Kawesa yesterday said the tax body would continue to carry out the operations aimed at ensuring that the body meets its projected revenue target of sh37.1b this financial year from fees and licenses.
“In the last nine months, we have collected sh24.8b from fees and licenses and sh2.8b from drivers permits, totalling 27.6b which creates a deficit of sh9.5b,†he said.
Kampala Criminal Investigations Department chief Moses Sakira apologised for the inconveniences but said the operation was necessary.
“The operation also presented a possibility for us laying our hands on vehicles that had earlier been robbed but not recovered,†he said.
Defaulting motorists had all their identities recorded before being ordered to park their vehicles at Jinja Road Police station where a special desk had been set up to carry out a screening exercise.
A Silver 230E Mercedes Benz registration number, UAB 300S belonging to the Algerian Embassy, and a dark Blue Nissan Terrano, registration number UAB 549R belonging to MTN, were among a number of high performance vehicles impounded.
The swoop started at about 6:00am with the security and tax officials erecting impromptu check points along major roads leading into the city, catching most of the early morning motorists by surprise.
Many of them drove straight into the checkpoints and were surprised when the officials waved them down and asked for their documents.
By press time yesterday, 94 of the 234 vehicles had been reclaimed after their owners cleared with the revenue authorities.
Police said the screening desk would remain open for the whole week to enable motorists reclaim their vehicles.
Ends
& David Muwanga
OVER 230 vehicles were yesterday impounded in a swoop that disrupted transport for a greater part of the day, triggering off a crisis in the city.
The six-hour joint operation by police and Uganda Revenue Authority (URA)officials, targeted motorists who had defaulted paying for licences.
As the URA officials looked out for vehicles without valid road licenses and other relevant documents, the police waved down all those in dangerous mechanical condition or those that had flouted traffic regulations.
Word of the sudden checks went round fast causing drivers of mini buses plying many routes to abandon business and hid their vehicles, sparking off the crisis.
Shrewd mini-bus drivers who remained on the roads cashed in on the operation and hiked fares to the city.
Many passengers had to pay twice the normal fare as they hurried to work in a week that twice started on the wrong note on a public holiday.
Greatly inconvenienced were parents who were returning their children to school for the second term.
Stranded parents and their children plus luggage were a common site in many parts of the city.
Many parents expressed disgust, saying the operation was ill-timed.
“How do they carry out such an operation on a day when children are going back to school?†an irate parent stuck with a her child in Luzira asked.
URA spokesman Christopher Kawesa yesterday said the tax body would continue to carry out the operations aimed at ensuring that the body meets its projected revenue target of sh37.1b this financial year from fees and licenses.
“In the last nine months, we have collected sh24.8b from fees and licenses and sh2.8b from drivers permits, totalling 27.6b which creates a deficit of sh9.5b,†he said.
Kampala Criminal Investigations Department chief Moses Sakira apologised for the inconveniences but said the operation was necessary.
“The operation also presented a possibility for us laying our hands on vehicles that had earlier been robbed but not recovered,†he said.
Defaulting motorists had all their identities recorded before being ordered to park their vehicles at Jinja Road Police station where a special desk had been set up to carry out a screening exercise.
A Silver 230E Mercedes Benz registration number, UAB 300S belonging to the Algerian Embassy, and a dark Blue Nissan Terrano, registration number UAB 549R belonging to MTN, were among a number of high performance vehicles impounded.
The swoop started at about 6:00am with the security and tax officials erecting impromptu check points along major roads leading into the city, catching most of the early morning motorists by surprise.
Many of them drove straight into the checkpoints and were surprised when the officials waved them down and asked for their documents.
By press time yesterday, 94 of the 234 vehicles had been reclaimed after their owners cleared with the revenue authorities.
Police said the screening desk would remain open for the whole week to enable motorists reclaim their vehicles.
Ends