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Seven top car dealers have ganged up and asked court to block a government move that opens up the supply of brand-new vehicles to the regime.

They are CFAO Motors Uganda Limited, Spear Motors Limited, Mac East Africa Limited, Motorcare Uganda Limited, Skenya Motors Uganda Limited, Tata Uganda Limited and Victoria Motors Limited. Uganda Motor Industry Association is also a plaintiff in the matter.

The car dealers are suing the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Authority (PPDA) and its executive director Benson Turamye.

The protest is resultant from a circular dated November 2, 2023, released by PPDA opening up space to other suppliers of brand-new motor vehicles.

On Thursday, April 18, 2024, Justice Musa Ssekaana of the Civil Division of the High Court, directed the applicants to file submissions on an application for a temporary injunction by April 24, 2024.

The judge also gave PPDA up to April 30, 2024, to file their submissions and he will deliver judgment on May 17, 2024.

Court documents indicate that on November 2, 2023, PPDA issued circular No.7 of 2023 to all accounting officers for central and local government entities, among others, requiring changes to the standard bidding document for procurement of supplies under open (national) and restricted (selective) bidding methods.

The petitioners, however, argue that the directive is illegal because they were never consulted in the process of making and issuing the impugned circular, yet they are key stakeholders in the industry.

In his affidavit, the managing director of CFAO Motors Uganda Thomas Pelletier argued that the directive is tainted with procedural impropriety for failure to observe the principles of natural justice in the decision-making process by PPDA.

“The matter is of public importance and has a direct impact on all public procurements for supplies in Uganda,” he contends.

He was supported by his fellow businessmen Gilbert Wavamunno, the managing director of Spear Motors Limited, Mac East Africa country general manager Arora Aditya, Motorcare managing director Florence Sempebwa Makada, among other applicants.