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Leaders want old buildings in Tororo Town demolished
Some old structures on the new Oguti Road, Western Division, Tororo Municipality. PHOTO | JOSEPH OMOLLO
A section of leaders in Tororo have asked the district council to formulate a by-law that enforces demolition of dilapidated buildings in the town.
They say the by-law should also have a clause, which compels owners of undeveloped plots to surrender ownership to individuals with capacity to develop them.
The leaders made recommendations during a meeting at the municipal hall organised by Tororo Municipal Development Forum at the weekend.
Mr Owere Odumo, a member of the development forum, said dilapidated buildings within the town are failing efforts to have the town upgraded to city status.
“It is embarrassing for Tororo to pursue a city status with the current buildings, which are in poor condition,” he said.
Dilapidated and poorly-maintained structures are mostly found on Bazar Street.
The buildings have leaking roofs and harbour rodents, according to the tenants interviewed by Daily Monitor.
Mr Ramathan Magino, a resident, said the structures misrepresent the town.
He added: “I’m surprised that the Tororo municipal council has kept ignoring the buildings despite the dangers they pose to the occupants.’’
During the meeting, members discovered that some of the individuals with undeveloped plots were offered freehold ownership which makes it difficult for the council to cancel their titles.
Ms Lilian Atim, the chairperson of Agurururu ‘’A’’ 1 Village, blamed the technical team for messing up the physical planning of the town.
“It is the council that allows people to secure freehold titles even after having knowledge that in such an urban area leases work better,’’ she said.
The president of Tororo Municipal Development Forum, Mr Amos Omoit, said dilapidated buildings and undeveloped plots within the central business centre are a threat to urban growth and development.
“The council needs to engage the landlords to see how best the face of the town can be improved. They should also come up with a by-law that will compel owners of dilapidated buildings to demolish them as well as cancel lease offers of undeveloped plots,” he said.
Mr Mark Olinga, the chairperson of landlords in Tororo Town, said the move is good but it should not be taken as an opportunity to grab people’s premises and plots.
“The council should go slow because some of us are ready to commence with the renovation of our buildings,” he said.
The Tororo municipal physical planner, Ms Gorreti Nakiyimba, said the council is in the process of revisiting its physical structural plan.
She said under the National Building Act 2013, the mandate to demolish any building is given to the respective local authority building committee after a structural integrity assessment survey has been done with National Building Review Board.
“The act allows the National Building Review Board to inspect, monitor and regulate building activities through the building control officers and their committees,” he said.
