Lukwago vows to fight Jennifer Musisi

Jul 09, 2011

THE power struggle between the Kampala Lord Mayor, Erias Lukwago and executive director Jennifer Semakula Musisi is getting deeper.

By John Semakula

THE power struggle between the Kampala Lord Mayor, Erias Lukwago and executive director Jennifer Semakula Musisi is getting deeper.

Lukwago says the power struggle between him and Semakula started as soon as he was sworn in and he would no longer keep quiet about it. “I had decided to ignore them, thinking that they would end soon, but they are not, and I have decided to break the silence,” he said.

The Lord Mayor says he will fight relentlessly to exercise his full authority, accusing the executive director of usurping his political powers.

Musisi, on the other hand, says she has not usurped Lukwago’s powers and will continue to do her work diligently. She argues that all her work has been given to her by the Kampala Capital City Act, 2010.

Lukwago insists that as the Lord Mayor, he has political authority over Musisi and that must be reflected in their operations.

“KCCA is governed politically and is headed by the Lord Mayor, not the executive director. But the executive director has overstepped her mandate and played my roles, which is wrong. I cannot sign KCCA’s books of accounts because it’s not my role,” Lukwago said.

But Musisi says her line of responsibilities is different from that of the Lord Mayor and she has a mandate to do her work, independent of him.

The disagreement started to peak on July 4 when Musisi blocked Lukwago from meeting Uganda Tax Operators and Drivers Association (UTODA) officials in a bid to probe their operations. Lukwago wanted to scrutinise UTODA’s audited books of accounts, memorandum and articles of association, return files and the structure of taxi fares.

But in a letter dated July 4, Musisi told Lukwago that there was no need for the meeting to take place because the KCCA had not yet pronounced itself on the issue.

The law and its implementation is part of the problem. Section 3 of the Act says Kampala will be administered by the central government. Section 5 says the Kampala Capital City Authority will administer the city on behalf of the central government. Section 6 says the authority shall consist of the Lord Mayor, deputy Lord Mayor and councilors. This particular section is silent about the executive director. On the basis of this, Lukwago argues that if the Authority is in charge of the city, and Musisi is not part of the Authority, then she cannot be above the Lord Mayor.

In response, Musisi said she is a legal advisor to the authority and that to remain independent, she needed not to be part of the authority.

Section 11 says the Lord Mayor will be the political head of the city. Section 17 says the executive director will be the chief executive of the Authority and will be appointed by the President of Uganda. Whereas the Act defines the roles of the Lord Mayor and executive director in details, it does not directly mention the power relations between the two. This leaves room for varied interpretations.

Muhammad Nsereko, the MP for Kampala Central, believes the only way such a power struggle would end is by letting the politicians take over full control over the technical persons.

But Rubanda County MP Henry Banyenzaki argues that the two leaders should concentrate on delivering services rather than who is bigger than the other. “Why is Lukwago fighting for powers? If the two work in harmony, they will deliver and both get the credit at the end of the day,” says Banyenzaki.

Banyenzaki also appeals to the political team at KCCA to give the Act a chance to since it has just been operationalized. He adds that when the president appoints a minister in charge of Kampala, many of the issues regarding administrative authority in the city will be resolved. Section 11, sub-section 2 of the Act says the Lord Mayor will be answerable to the Authority and the Minister.

“The President is soon appointing a minister in charge of Kampala who will help to iron out the differences and soon they will be history,” says Banyenzaki



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