The election of the former Mukono Municipality Mayor, George Fred Kagimu, as the president of the Municipal Development Forum-MDF, has sparked protests from councilors through the works committee.
Kagimu assumed the role of president at the beginning of this year and has since convened over ten meetings to discuss urban development issues.
Municipal-level urban forums like the MDF are designated to provide a platform where all urban development stakeholders can convene and exchange ideas regarding effective strategies to address service delivery gaps and resource mobilization.
However, the Secretary for the Works Committee, Vincent Lubwama, claims that Kagimu’s election was erroneous. He revealed that his committee has already passed a resolution to table a motion that would cancel Kagimu’s election and replace him with his deputy, Jamadah Kajoba.
Lubwama accuses Kagimu of holding an active political office, which goes against the guidelines for the establishment of the MDF. Kagimu currently serves as the deputy president of the Democratic Party (DP) in the Buganda Region. Lubwama stated, “We have many development issues to address, and the president-elect is promoting conflicting ideologies that could hinder our community’s development.”
In response, Kagimu asserts that he was legitimately elected by all responsible stakeholders during a meeting that included relevant municipal leaders. He also points out that he represents businesspeople in his capacity as president, adding that the leaders now objecting to his election did not raise any concerns during the meeting.
The Mukono municipal mayor, Erisa Mukasa Nkoyoyo, and the town clerk’s office have petitioned the line ministry for guidance. Nkoyoyo argues that Kagimu’s current position as the MDF president would contradict the forum’s intended purpose. Nkoyoyo highlights several concerns, including Kagimu’s active involvement in politics and past issues related to his tenure as mayor, such as problems with major institutions and projects.
He believes that having Kagimu as the MDF president would not be beneficial, as many people may be unwilling to listen to him. “We need a development forum with leaders who can help us generate sufficient revenue, maintain a clean town, mediate between urban dwellers and urban managers, and address land-grabbing issues, among others. We require independent minds to guide local development,” Nkoyoyo emphasizes.
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