Warning: Trying to access array offset on value of type bool in /usr/www/users/urnnet/a/story.php on line 43 Lira Mayor, Town Clerk Divided Over Vendor's Eviction :: Uganda Radionetwork
The municipal law enforcement team and officers from Lira Central Police Station impounded merchandise from the vendors for safe custody at Lira Municipal Council Store. Some of the vendors were fined Shillings 100,000 for operating illegally on the streets.
Ogwang told URN, the operation has been halted until the vendors sensitized on dangers of streets operations.
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Lira Municipal Council has suspended the
eviction of vendors from major streets in the town. The eviction started mid last week with the
aim of clearing vendors off Oyam, Obote Avenue, Noteber, Bala and Aputi roads.
The municipal law enforcement team and
officers from Lira Central Police Station impounded merchandise from the
vendors for safe custody at Lira Municipal Council Store. Some of the vendors
were fined Shillings 100,000 for operating illegally on the streets.
However,
some of the vendors found their merchandise missing after paying the fine. This
prompted the vendors to petition the Mayor, Mike
Ogwang after being blocked from accessing the town clerk, Samuel Ahabwe who
sanctioned the operation.
Ogwang and his entire executive committee
questioned the mode of the operations and how the confiscated items of the vendors
could disappear from the Municipal store. As a
result, the municipal executive has decided to halt the eviction until the vendors are sensitized on the dangers of
operating on the streets.
Lawrence Aliga, the Deputy Mayor, says there is need
to guarantee the safety of confiscated items before the operations continue. He says
several vendors have recorded loss of their
stock impounded by the law enforcement team.
Voice-over sound clip of Aliga on the operation
//Cue in: “This kind of operation….
Cue out: …. that only targets the poor,”//
Tony Okullo, a vendor and resident of Ober-Entebbe ward in
Ojwina Division, claims to have lost 15 pairs of shoes out of the 40
confiscated. Okullo says the municipality has not provided him any proper
explanation of the disappearance of his shoes.
Brian Aliro, another vendor has recorded loss of items worth
Shillings 2 million. Ahabwe has promised to verify the claims of missing items
by the vendors. He however, insists that the eviction was conducted in line
with the council resolutions and market act.
This is the second time Ahabwe is embroiled in a dispute with
the Mayor and his executive on the conduct of council business.
