Total chaos at Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) headquarters as street cleaners storm Executive Director’s office demanding for the payment of their accumulated 8 months wage arrears.
It all started with a council meeting convened by the Speaker Zahara Luyirika to discuss matters concerning the non payment of the casual workers who clean city roads on a daily basis but the meeting with started at noon ended prematurely as Rubaga North male representative councillor James Mubiru started shouting at the top of his voice demanding for payment of KCCA casual labourers.
Councillor Namazzi Olivia the Executive Secretary for the Public Health and Education Committee had initially presented a report on Casual workers SACCOs represented by 7 Hills company that was a warded the tender to clean the city roads and flower gardens, but as soon as she finished her presentation, chaos started.
The speaker had no option but to adjourn the council because most of the councillor had stormed out of the council chambers to join KCCA casual workers who had stormed the authority’s premises seeking an explanation from the Executive Director why they are not paid for all that long.
The casual labourers with placards reading ‘Kisaka, Luyimbazi sasula omunaku’ ,together with some councillors went to parliament as a protest to show their dissatisfaction to government for the non payment of their wages.
The speaker while addressing reporters said that as KCCA council, will fight to ensure that justice prevails and that these low income earners get paid their wage arrears without intimidation.
“ Funds are always released to 7Hills a company that is supposed to pay these casual workers but we are also astonished to hear that they go 6-8 months without receiving a single coin.’’ Luyirika explained.
The Executive wing led by the Authority’s ED Dorothy Kisaka, Lord Mayor and the minister for Kampala had also on 024-02-29 convened a meeting at Fairway hotel to discuss the same issue of casual workers but a person who attend it intimated to the reporter of this website that they failed to reach a consensus and it also almost turned chaotic.
By George Bukenya