Pallisa landlords given 6 months to fix old houses
Pallisa Town Council authorities in December 2023 passed a resolution giving landlords six months to renovate such old structures. PHOTO/DENIS EDEMA
Landlords in Pallisa District have been given six months to renovate old structures.
Pallisa Town Council Mayor Yusuf Zomu says most of the buildings are now outdated, cannot attract serious investments- and aren’t bringing in revenue.
“Council passed a resolution in December 2023, directing all landlords in the township to renovate or redevelop their buildings with current new structural designs within six months,” Zomu told Monitor.
According to Zomu, the directive mainly targets structures constructed in the 1920s that have since never been renovated.
“Any landlord who doesn’t respond to the letters written to them should notify council in that regard,” he added.
A street in Pallisa Town as seen on February 7, 2024. PHOTO/DENNIS EDEMA
Zomu notes that tarmac roads have changed the physical outlook of Pallisa Town Council, calling for a shift in focus to the new designs of buildings that will match the roads’ beauty.
Public servant Grace Auma says Pallisa District needs new buildings to attract investors and services which are not available before the challenge of bad roads had been solved.
But Pallisa Town businessman James Makeri believes “the directive to phase out old houses will push landlords to increase rent.”
Pallisa Resident District Commissioner (RDC) Majidu Dhikusooka also appealed to the district leadership to sensitise residents before implementing town council resolutions.
In fulfillment of a 2021 presidential pledge, government committed Shs146billion to construct 7Kms of road network in Pallisa Town Council and 12.2Kms in Kumi Municipality.
Both construction works are being supervised by Uganda National Road Authority (Unra).
Unra Deputy Resident Engineer Paul Anguria told Monitor that already commenced works will take 21 months in Pallisa District.
For Apopong Sub-county LC3 chairperson Emmanuel Olupot, development in Pallisa comes with advantages and disadvantages, which locals may take a long time to understand, but they have to bear with the situation.
“The road networks that have been put have connected Pallisa and Kumi to neighbouring districts, and what is left is talking to landlords who own old buildings to revamp them,” he added.
