Authorities give vendors one month to vacate Source of Nile
Some of the vendors operating at the Source of the Nile sit next to their kiosks after enforcement officers from Jinja City Council threw them out to pave the way for redevelopment of the revered tourist site on October 11, 2023. PHOTO/ DENIS EDEMA
What you need to know:
- Jinja City Council authorities on Wednesday dispatched an enforcement team to start the eviction exercise.
At least 200 vendors operating kiosks at the Source of River Nile in Jinja City have been given month to vacate the area to pave way for a Shs19b project.
Specifically, the vendors are supposed to vacate shortly after this year’s Nyege Nyege Festival, which runs from November 9 to November 13. This year’s edition of Nyege Nyege will be held at the Source of the Nile, Jinja Agricultural Showground and Jinja Golf Course (Jinja Club).
Mr Edward Lwanga, the Jinja City Town Clerk, said the government, through the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, is to build a glass pier at the Source of the Nile, adding that the project is long overdue.
“The long-awaited project is on course and finally Excel Construction Company Limited has been awarded the contract at a cost of Shs19b to last 12 months,” Mr Lwanga said in an interview on Wednesday.
He added: “We were supposed to hand over the site to the contractor earlier this month (October), but as you can see there are some issues with the people operating at the Source of the Nile.”
Mr Lwanga, however, warned that a delay to hand over the site to the contractor within the stipulated time will attract “financial implications” in future.
Jinja City Council authorities on Wednesday dispatched an enforcement team to evict the vendors.
The impromptu eviction exercise, which saw several vendors’ items thrown out and their kiosks destroyed, was met by protests by the vendors, who demanded to be relocated as allegedly stipulated in a letter from the Ministry of Tourism.
The vendors’ protest was immediately quelled by Uganda Police Force and Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF).
The vendors, led by Mr Salim Gizamba, said they are ready to vacate the area to allow redevelopment, but the communication asking them to vacate came at short notice and gives no option for where they will be relocated.
“We are not against this development, but the Council has not told us where we are going yet there were discussions about our resettlement, considering that we have been operating here for over 20 years,” Mr Gizamba said.
Mr Gizamba said the vendors are over 200 and are servicing loans they had acquired to restock ahead of the Nyege Nyege Festival.
The Jinja Resident City Commissioner, Mr Darius Nandinda, flanked by his two deputies; Mr Henry Kitambula (Jinja Southern Division), and Ms Lydia Kalemera (Jinja North Division), stopped eviction of the vendors on the orders of Mr Lwanga.
According to Mr Lwanga, there was a miscommunication regarding the implementation of the project to the affected persons; but said the vendors can operate until the end of the Nyege Nyege Festival, after which the Council will see where to relocate them.
Mr Nandinda said the vendors petitioned the Office of the President over Jinja City Council’s alleged illegal evictions and that he had discussed the matter with Mr Lwanga.
