By Jonathan Bukenya
Bus strike enters the third day in Kampala ,bus owners under the Uganda Bus Owners Association (UBOA) have vowed to continue with their ongoing strike following Kampala Capital City Authority’s (KCCA) decision to block buses from leaving the parks over unpaid fees. According to KCCA, each bus is mandated to pay Shs2.4 million annually as user park fees which bus owners disclaim due to the state of business performance at the moment.
This has led to the rise of transport fares in Kampala and has left 1000’s of people confused in town with only one option of taking a Taxi, or Mini Bus but which comes with an extra costs. Bus terminal s like , Kisenyi, Namayimba, Global,and kalita were seen with alot of people confused on the next step
Speaking to Kakoba Media, UBOA chairperson, Mr. Solomon Nsiimire said until a consensus is reached, their strike will continue, explaining that this will affect Ugandans who have been travelling at lower fares.
“Most of the bus operators load from private bus terminals and every bus that exits that terminal pays Shs5,3000 per day. In a year, each bus pays over Shs19 million to the private park owners. So when you add the 2.4 million which KCCA wants, each bus would be paying over 24 million shillings per year. So we are saying this money is too much and we are not ready to add on any more money,” Nsiimire told said.
