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Speaker Anita Annet Among has directed the Government to present a statement about an ongoing traders' strike that has paralysed business around the country.

“We had asked the committee of finance and trade to interrogate that, they have not yet finished but in the meantime, as we wait for the committee, what do we do? We want to hear from you trade (Ministry),” she said.

“This is a substantial item on the order paper, after laying off the papers we are going to discuss the issue of traders,” Among added.

“What is on the order paper is not a report of the trade committee, it is a statement from the Government. So trade committee and finance, we are waiting for your report".

She issued the directive during plenary on Thursday, April 18, 2024. For three days now, business people have closed shops over what they are calling unresolved issues they have with the Government and the taxman including the enforcement of the Electronic Fiscal Receipting System (EFRIS). EFRIS is a system that enables business operators to transact and manage the issuance of e-receipts and e-invoices in real time.

Jonathan Odur (Erute South, UPC) traced the impasse to Section 73(a) of the Tax Procedures Code.

“In that section, we delegated some responsibility, part of our responsibility to legislate to the commissioner general of the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) and he made regulations which are now causing a problem between the traders,” Odur said.

As such, he said the time has come to scrutinise the regulation.

“In the past, we had suggested that all statutory instruments made for and on behalf of Parliament should be brought here even when it is not mandatory so that we can ascertain whether it is the actual intentions of the law that we have made,” Odur added.

On his part, Solomon Silwany (Bukhooli central, NRM) pointed out that the strike which started in Kampala had spread like wildfire engulfing the towns of Jinja and Iganga.

As such, Silwany wants the trade ministry to stipulate ways how the current impasse can be resolved. 

“Because it is now affecting the whole country and revenue collection is down,” Silwany pointed out.

Aggrieved traders are set to meet with President Yoweri Museveni on Friday. State Minister for Kampala City and Metropolitan Affairs, Christopher Kyofatogabye announced this while meeting city traders yesterday.