Janet Museveni: My daughters married when virgins

First Lady Janet Museveni (middle in a hat) takes a group photo with adolescent girls and regional leaders in Kyenjojo. Photo by Stephen Wandera. 

SUNDAY OCTOBER 15 2017

http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Museveni-s-daughters-avoided-sex-before-marriage--says-wife/688334-4140742-4gf9v3/index.html

By Felix Basiime

KYENJOJO.

First Lady Janet Museveni has said that she kept her daughters virgins until marriage by using traditional African way of bringing up a girl child. 

“I made all my daughters to sign 'true love waits' cards and they would abstain from sex until the wedding night (when) they (would) produce these cards to their spouses," said Ms Museveni adding that "this can be achieved even today”.

Ms Museveni was speaking in Kyenjojo District during the commemoration of the Day for the Girl Child on Thursday. 

She added: “That is how we, in the past, were brought up by our parents, there was no such immorality like now”.

The day was preceded by a dialogue between stakeholders who committed themselves to protect the rights of the adolescent girls.

Ms Museveni’s daughters include Ms Diana Museveni (married to Mr Geoffrey Kamuntu), Ms Natasha Museveni (married to Mr Edwin Karugire) and Ms Patience Museveni (married to Mr Odrek Rwabwogo).

“Whether a man is big or small, say no and run away, a man can use sweet language to persuade you, don’t allow any man to use you when you are a young girl, not even an adolescent boy, no man should engage you in sexual intercourse until you are married, true love waits,” Ms Museveni reiterated to the adolescent girls.

She said that most young girls in Uganda die while giving birth because their bodies are not yet ready to deliver babies.

She rebuked parents who engage with the rape or defilement suspects to settle cases by receiving money.

“Please, parents, stop asking for money to settle rape or defilement cases. The parent is the biggest stakeholder in the development of the girl child,” she said.

She said in the community where she grew up, the community would collectively help in bringing up the child morally which is not the case today. 

“This value has been eroded in our society today but this must be revived,” she said.

She added that the free supply of contraceptives in the country has contributed to the erosion of morals to some extent. 

“The use of contraceptives is not our culture, we no longer have pride to say no, people are given contraceptives to use them and do what they want, have sex, take pills, conceive and abort, this is not our culture in Africa,” she said, adding, “Just say, thank you (to the service providers) our culture does not believe in this, we should protect the values of our society”. 

Ms Museveni who is also the minister for education later launched the national gender in education sector policy that among others, spells how the rights of adolescents should be protected.

It is expected to provide skills and knowledge equally to both girls and boys.

Bunyangabu struggles to deliver services as government grants delay

Demand. Kibiito Health Centre III in the Bunyangabu District. Authorities want the government to elevate the centre to a hospital status to serve the people better. PHOTO BY FELIX BASIIME.  

THURSDAY AUGUST 24 2017

http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Bunyangabu-struggles-to-deliver-services-as-govt-grants-delay--/688334-4068568-mv7jl0z/index.html

In Summary

• Stranded. The district leadership says ever since its inception on July 1, they have never received any money from the central government to implement the plans and that this has affected its operations and progress.

By ALEX ASHABA & FELIX BASIIME

BUNYANGABU: The newly created Bunyangabu District is struggling to deliver services as government has not deposited any money on its accounts to run its operations since its inception on July 1. 

Bunyangabu District was carved out of Kabarole District after it was approved by Parliament in 2015 to start operating in the Financial Year 2017/2018.

It is now almost two months since the district became operational but the struggle to implement district planned activities has remained a challenge due to lack of resources.

During the 2017/18 budget review for Kabarole District in May, the then secretary for finance, planning and administration, Mr Peter Musiguzi, presented a budget of Shs13b for Bunyangabu District with Shs361m from local revenue and the rest was to be provided for by the central government.

But due to lack of funds, the new district is currently sharing the administration block with Kibito Town Council, which members of staff say is congested and hence makes their work difficult.

The interim chairman for Bunyangabu District, Mr Musiguzi, says from day one, the heads of departments have been using their own personal resources to run the activities of the district.

Musiguzi revealed that Kabarole District has also been helping them with both stationery and fuel to use as they wait for operational funds from government.

“As I talk now, the district has not received any money from government to run district activities and we have been helped by Kabarole District to carry out some activities,” Musiguzi said.

Equally, the acting vice chairperson, Mr Remegiaus Turyahebwa, revealed that all civil servants in the district have not received their salaries.

Mr Turyahebwa explains that they have made work plans in all seven sub-counties and five town councils but they are only waiting for funds from government to start working on roads and bridges in villages and other priority areas.

“We are going to receive the road unit from government but we don’t have drivers and as a new district, we have few workers who are in acting positions which is hindering service delivery to the community,” Turyahebwa says.

He says the interim council has budgeted Shs700m to construct district administration block, Shs130m for vehicles and also to renovate Kibito Town Council structure where they are operating from.

Ms Annent Kasamba, the woman councillor representing Kabonero and Kibito town councils, says since July 1, all district councillors have not received their allowances and salaries but use their own money to monitor government programmes.

“When we sit in council, we are supposed to receive our allowances that very day but unfortunately, it is now the second time we have sat without pay and even our July dues of Shs175,000 are not yet paid,” Kasamba says.

The acting chief administrative officer, Mr Peter Ruhweeza Nsungwa, attributes the delay of salaries of civil servants and councillors to the delay in having them onto the Finance ministry accounts; a move he said takes long.

“I cannot tell you when councillors, civil servants and other grants from central government will be on our account and we start working for people. There is no body who is striking over that,” Mr Ruhweeza said.

Issues in the new districts
Under the Constitution, new districts can be created on the basis of the necessity for effective administration and the need to bring services closer to people but with time this has almost lost meaning.

Other considerations that are usually taken into account in the creation of new districts include the means of communication, geographical features, and the density of the population, economic viability, and the wishes of the people concerned.

However, some observers say the NRM government is in the habit of creating districts both as a reward for its supporters and as a condition for support in areas where it has historically not enjoyed popular support.

The observers further explain that this politicisation of the decentralisation process has greatly undermined performance.

Uganda has moved from 38 districts in 1986 when NRM government captured power, to more than 112 districts now.

Scare as elephants, locals compete for water source

Locals compete with elephants for water source 

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 21 2017

http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Scare-as-elephants--locals-compete-for-water-source/688334-4105012-evo3h9z/index.html

In Summary

• Threat. The residents say they fetch water from contaminated wells and in wetlands, hence being exposed to water-borne diseases which are costly to cure.

By FELIX BASIIME & ALEX ASHABA

KABAROLE. For the past 30 years, 65-year-old Fred Ndabahwenje has lived at Nyabubale Village in Kiko Town Council, Kabarole District. But he treks more than 3kms in search of safe water. 

Even when the World Health Organisation stresses the right to safe water for both domestic use and recreational purposes, this is not the case in Kabarole District.

Mr Ndabahwenje says the only available wells were dug up by the residents from water stressed villages and that the water is shared with elephants that stray from the nearby Kibale National Park.

“For many years, government has been promising to avail us with water. They have been telling us that they will extend gravity flow water or piped water from National Water and Sewerage Cooperation but in vain,” he notes.

He says they fetch dirty water from wells and in wetlands, exposing residents to water-borne diseases which he says are costly to cure, especially in private hospitals.

However, Mr Andrew Kusemererwa, from Kyalegi Village in the same district, says residents are helped by Kiko Tea Estate that at times avails safe water but not daily.

Mr Kusemererwa says the three neighbouring villages and Kiko trading centre all use one shallow well that is also overwhelmed by the community as it sometimes dries up.

“We use boda bodas to move 2kms to get clean water. Each jerrycan costs Shs1,000 during dry season,” he says, adding: “Since I was born, I have seen my parents getting water from the same well. We are tired of dirty water.”

Ms Grace Banura from Kiko Village, says more than 500 people from her village share one shallow well that was built in 1996 by the community.
She says the well is seasonal and water is rationed by the area water committee.

“They ration the water supply because the committee doesn’t want to run out of water. When they open it in the evening, each person is allowed to fetch only one jerrycan,” Banura says.

In Harugongo Sub-county, the story is not so different.

The LC I chairman of Mpinga Village, Mr Moses Irumba, says many people trek long distances to fetch water from swamps which in most cases contract diseases.

Mr Irumba says the only three shallow wells in the five neighbouring villages were set up in 2002 by Hewasa, a non-governmental organisation in Fort Portal Diocese, to enable people get clean water.

“The five villages of Kyabuhara, Mudama, Kyehembe, Mpinga and Mirongo use three shallow wells which are overwhelmed and at times dry up hence affecting everyone,” Irumba says.

He says the shallow wells were constructed to serve a small population that has since increased without matching water resources in the area.

Ms Florence Apecho, the head teacher at Mpinga Primary School in Harugongo Sub-county, says though the school has a tank for harvesting rain water, it is also shared by all members of the community hence dries up quickly.

“When our tank dries up, we face a big challenge. We are forced to send pupils to fetch water far away from the school as early as 7am. This puts the lives of these pupils at risk,” Ms Apecho says.

Kahugi Parish has only two shallow wells that serve a population of more than 500 people, according to Mr Aston Mabiho who is a resident in the area. He says the area has schools and a health centre that require constant water supply.

“The water we use in our homes is not good. People move between two and three kilometres to access clean water,” Mr Mabiho says.

Despite Uganda being signatory to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) where number six is to ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all, several villages in Uganda are still behind on this.

The villages in Kiko town council are: Ruteete, Mugusu, Harugongo, Busoro, Hakibale, Kasenda and Kichwamba that do not have improved water source.

Despite Kabarole and Bunyangabu districts being endowed with several rivers and about 56 crater lakes, their people are part of the 35 per cent of the whole population in Uganda living without clean water.
The current national coverage is 65 per cent.

Research
According to a report of the UN Secretary-General, “Progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals”, access to safe water and sanitation and sound management of freshwater ecosystems are essential to human health, environmental sustainability and economic prosperity.

In 2015, 6.6 billion people (more than 90 per cent of the world’s population) used improved drinking water sources. In this case, people without access live predominantly in rural areas.

According to the National Service Delivery Survey 2015 report, inadequate safe water sources (47 per cent) was the major constraint faced by households in accessing safe water, followed by long distance (34 per cent).

The Water and Environment Sector Performance Report (2015) indicates that the sector target for access to improved water is to have 77 per cent of people in rural areas within 1km and 100 per cent of people in urban areas within 0.2km of improved water source but this hasn’t been achieved.

Across the survey periods, the majority of households moved a distance of up to half a kilometer with percentages ranging from 63 per cent to 69 per cent in the wet season compared to 57 per cent to 60 per cent in dry season.

The proportion of households who travel up to half a kilometre to a safe water source constituted the majority in the two survey periods for both rural and urban areas.

A higher proportion of the households in the urban (76 per cent) compared to rural areas (55 per cent) travelled a distance of up to 0.5km distance to a safe water source.

The same survey indicates that inadequate safe water sources were the major constraint faced by households followed by long distance.

The two constraints were more pronounced in rural compared to urban areas.
According to a July report on water and sanitation status and plans for Kabarole District Local Government authored Mr Pius Mugabi Katuramu, the senior water officer, water coverage in the district is at 72 per cent.

But an independent survey carried out in June by Mr Martin Watsisi of International Water and Sanitation Centre on Kabarole District found that 45.2 per cent of the water sources were constructed over 15 years ago, 38 per cent are between six and 15 years old and only 16 per cent were constructed in last five years. The rest were not known.

New laboratory to ensure clean water supply, boost fisheries in the Albertine Graben

A section of Mpanga River in Fort Portal town containing bottles and wastes dumped recently. photo by Alex Ashaba

THURSDAY AUGUST 31 2017

http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/New-laboratory-to-ensure-clean-water-supply--boost-fisheries/688334-4077208-8tmu9/index.html

In Summary

·         Schedule. Construction of the water testing laboratory will commence in October and it is expected to be completed in two years’ time, according to Mr Steven Ogwete, the national project coordinator.

By FELIX BASIIME & ALEX ASHABA

KABAROLE/KASESE. Residents of Fort Portal Municipality in Kabarole District have long complained about the quality of tap water supplied to them.

Ms Nyakato Rusoke, a resident of Kitumba, East Division in Fort Portal Municipality, says: “I collected water, not from River Mpanga, but from a tap in the morning and I thought I would use it to prepare breakfast. What I saw defeated my understanding! Why should consumers part with our hard-earned money to pay for such dirty water”.

She continues: “In my layman’s view, this water is not fit to even be used in a toilet, because it will leave it stained! I have observed this for some time.”

However, with the establishment of a multi-billion laboratory for testing water quality in the Albertine region in the offing, things are set to improve.
The $7.321 million (Shs26. 2b) laboratory will be based in Fort Portal, Kabarole District.

The scheme which will commence in October, will be implemented under the lakes Edward and Albert Integrated Fisheries and Water Resources Management Project ( LEAF II), and is expected to be completed in two years’ time, according to Mr Steven Ogwete, the national project coordinator.

Mr Denis Muramuzi, the National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) Fort Portal branch manager, says it is expensive to filter polluted water from Mpanga River because it needs a lot of chemicals to purify it.

Because of the contamination in the last six years, water treatment cost at NWSC plant in Fort Portal has tripled as they use more chemicals than before to purify the water.

NWSC supplies water to 7, 017 households in Fort Portal Town alone and of late consumers have complained of the quality of the tap water pumped to their homes.

“Therefore, the water testing lab by LEAF II will come with advanced data equipment that we shall all use to have better quality water. Currently, we do some quality tests at our plant in Fort Portal, but at times we take samples to NWSC lab in Mbarara,” Mr Muramuzi adds.

The Fort Portal laboratory is part of the bigger $24.54 million (Shs88. 3b) five-year project that covers Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo that will be complete in June 2021. The project is funded by Africa Development Bank and Global Environmental Fund (GEF).

The LEAF project will set up water resource monitoring and assessment centre for lakes George and Albert and their catchment areas.

The project is aimed at boosting fishing industries of countries that share the lakes.
Rivers Nyamwamba, Mpanga and Semliki empty into lakes George and Albert, respectively. Human activities along these rivers affect the water quality upstream to downstream and also affect fishing in the lakes through siltation and pollution.

“LEAF is to sustainably increase the lakes’ fish productivity by promoting good fish capture and management practice, restoration of the lakes catchments and improvement of water quality on the shared lakes’ water resources” said Mr Ogwete.

According to Mr Ogwete, the project will also provide a platform for local governments to share and exchange knowledge, information, experiences, lessons and challenges that may be faced in managing and conserving water bodies.

In the Albert region, LEAF II Project covers Bushenyi, Rubirizi, Mitooma, Kanungu, Kasese Rukungiri, Bundibugyo, Ntoroko, Hoima, Kagadi, Buliisa, Kibaale, Masindi, Nebbi and Kabarole districts.

Mr Ogwete says the project will create an enabling environment and strengthen the legal, policy, institutional and regulatory framework for sustainable management of natural resources and protection of the environment.

The project has three components: fisheries development and management, integrated water resources management and project management and coordination.
Under the fisheries development and management, landing sites with fish processing facilities, feeder roads, and safe water supply and sanitation facilities will be constructed.

Five landing sites will be constructed at Rwenshama on Lake Edward, Mahyoro on Lake George, and Kitebere, Mbegu and Bei on Lake Albert.

Goals
LEAF phase II is expected to tackle poverty reduction, ensure food security through development of fishery sector where nearly 45, 000 jobs are expected to be directly and indirectly created.

About 50 per cent of those expected to benefit from the fisheries sector are women.
“Due to the weakened river banks arising from human and cattle paths, erosion along the banks has contributed to the release of soils into the rivers leading to the silting effect of the river on the DRC side,” Ogwete says

“There is a need to dredge and deepen the River Semliki and remove the silt that has blocked the passage of water along the channel causing its continuous shift,” he adds.

·          

New tarmac road boosting business in western Uganda

A truck ferrying traders on Fort Portal-Kamwenge road recently inside Kibale national park. PHOTO BY FELIX BASIIME.  

THURSDAY AUGUST 10 2017

http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/New-tarmac-road-boosting-business-in-western-Uganda/688334-4051722-d6kslb/index.html

In Summary

·         Easy. Traders now find it easier to access market for their goods due to the smooth road.

By Monitor reporters

FORTPORTAL/KAMWENGE. The completion of the 206km Fort Portal-Nyakahita Road is boosting business and tourism in western Uganda.
The last section of the road, the 66 km Kamwenge-Fort Portal stretch, was completed recently.

New businesses, including eateries, lodging facilities among others, are springing up along the new road.

Before the completion of the Ibanda-Fort Portal road, there were only two minibuses plying the Fort Portal-Mbarara route. There are now 13 minibuses plying the route.

Also, in the past, many travellers would connect to Mbarara District via Kasese District, which would make the journey longer by 50kms.

Many farmers, commuter minibus drivers, vendors and residents say they are optimistic business will boom and that they will reap the benefits associated with tarmac roads.

Ms Agnes Kobusige, a farmer from Bukwali, East Division, Fort Portal Municipality, said five years ago, transport was very difficult on the Fort Portal-Kamwenge Road.
She said the road had very many potholes and was always impassable in the rainy season as vehicles would get stuck on the muddy road for hours.

The traders would have to wait for the road surface to dry before they could resume the journey. This could sometimes take days, and in the process, some goods, especially fresh produce, would get spoilt.

Ms Kobusige said now that the road has been upgraded from murram to tarmac, farmers find it easy to transport their produce to the market.
“We are now able to access markets for our produce outside Rwenzori sub-region,” Kobusige said.

Mr Sunday Tadeo, 40, a taxi driver on the new Fort Portal-Kamwenge Road, said before the road was upgraded, they would not drive up to Mbarara Town because the road was so bumpy.

He said it now takes them one-and-a-half hours to drive from Fort Portal Town to Kamwenge District, unlike in the past when the same journey would cost them at least three hours.

“We are now earning more profits because we make [more] return journeys, which was not the case in the past,” he said.
He added that the cost of repairing their cars has also reduced since they now rarely breakdown.

Passengers are also benefitting from the upgrade of the road since taxi fares, for instance from Fort Portal to Kamwenge District, have reduced from Shs15, 000 to Shs10, 000.

Mr Robert Mugabe, a trader at Kabudaire Market in Fort Portal Municipality, said his business of buying produce from Kamwenge has been boosted by the new road as farmers can easily deliver the goods to him.
According to the records at Kibale Forest National Park, many tourists now find it easier to access the park through Nyakahita-Ibanda-Kamwenge-Fort Portal road.

The Kamwenge District chairman, Mr Aggrey Natuhamya, said the upgraded road has boosted business and tourism in the area.

“We are now receiving more guests at Katonga Game Reserve, Lake George, rivers Mpanga and Dura, Kanyancu Tourist Centre and Bigodi wetlands sanctuary,” he said.
He added that the new road has also boosted business for lodging facilities such as Mantana, Nkingo and Bigodi Resort, all in Busiriba Sub-county, Kamwenge Guest home, Tides Motel, Club Afreka and Cape hotel in Kamwenge Town Council.

The Ibanda District chairman, Mr Melichiadis Kazwengye, said the new road will increase the pace of development in the district.
“Now many traders from Kiruhura and Kamwenge districts make stopovers in Ibanda, thereby boosting business here as well,” he said.

Reported by Felix Basiime, Alex Ashaba & Fedinand Tuhame.

Stigma affecting HIV/Aids fight in Kasese, Kabarole

A health worker conducts an HIV/Aids test on a child. File photo 

THURSDAY AUGUST 10 2017

http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Stigma-affecting-HIV-Aids--fight-in-Kasese--Kabarole-/688334-4051712-io4ahs/index.html

In Summary

·         Stigma. Many people living with the virus fear to disclose their status due to fear of discrimination.

 By FELIX BASIIME

Kasese. Sarah (not real names), 13, stays with her mother, Margaret Birungi at Nyakasanga West in Kasese Municipality, Kasese District. Both daughter and mother are living with HIV/Aids. Sarah’s father died five years ago.

As a single mother of five, Birungi could not afford staying in town with the family and decided to send Sarah and her siblings to her grandparents in Kibiito, Kabarole District in 2015.

In Kibiito, Sarah joined Mugoma B Primary School, where she dropped out in Primary Three due to stigmatisation.

“She had to leave school due to stigmatisation from her peers and teachers. Pupils would laugh at her for taking ARVs, while teachers would beat her for not performing well in class as she would most of the time miss classes due to sickness,” her mother recollects. She adds that her family was forced to relocate to their current residence in Kasese, where she believed the stigmatisation would be less and also live in better social and economic conditions.

Birungi says even when she [Sarah] fetched water at the borehole in the village, other people would not use it, claiming they would contract the disease.

“I asked myself why I was the only one taking drugs daily and my other siblings didn’t,” Sarah narrated her ordeal to Daily Monitor in an interview recently.

Though the family relocated to Kasese Town, Sarah hasn’t resumed school as she and her mother spend most of the time attending clinics at St Paul’s Health Centre IV.
Birungi says: “Yes, we are now in town, there is less stigmatisation, and better feeding but I cannot afford school fees for Sarah.”

However, despite the interventions by government and other stakeholders, including NGOs, stigmatisation is still a big hurdle in the fight against HIV/Aids.
According to Faith Makombi Kwebaze, the programmes coordinator at National Community of Women Living with HIV/Aids (Nacwola), an NGO based in Kasese, out of 6,800 children in their area of coverage, only 3,500 can disclose their sero status.

Nacwola covers Kasese, Rubirizi, Kiruhura and Sheema districts.
“Stigmatisation and discrimination is still there, especially among the married couples. This is because most men have limited information about HIV/Aids prevention,” Makombi explains.

“Women test for HIV/Aids but when they go back home and disclose their positive status to their husbands and other family members, they are discriminated against and the family breaks up,” Makombi adds.

Nachwola community volunteers (individuals living with HIV/Aids) have come up to offer free counselling services to people living with HIV/Aids as one of the ways to fight stigmatisation.

“We have community volunteers and in schools, our monitors go there to teach life skills to pupils,” she adds.

At St Paul’s Health Centre IV, where both Sarah and her mother Birungi attend weekly clinics, Annet Bintu, a psychological councillor, says they have tried to reduce stigmatisation through counselling.

“We have 59 children who attend our clinics and we have fought stigmatisation up to 65 per cent, which means out of 100 people, 65 can disclose their zero status,” Bintu says.
According to John Thawite, the Kasese District HIV/Aids coordinator, stigmatisation is one of the biggest challenges they are facing in the fight against HIV/Aids.
“Some people have failed to disclose their status because of stigma from the public,” he says.

As a mitigation measure, he says the district authorities have embarked on counselling, especially to the young ones and married couples.

“We have also set up sub-county HIV/Aids committees where we train members to support others. We further encourage teachers to talk about HIV/Aids in classes,” he says.

He adds that as a district, they are about to release a five-year HIV/Aids plan with more interventions, including carrying out a stigmatisation and discrimination survey in the district.

“This survey on stigma and discrimination will give us a direction on more strategies,” he adds.

Kabarole leaders clash over city status

Development. A section of Fort Portal Town. A dispute has ensued between those in favour and against the proposal to change the name of the planned Fort Portal city to Kabarole city. PHOTO BY FELIX BASIIME 

THURSDAY JULY 27 2017

http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Kabarole-leaders-clash-over-city-status/688334-4033602-prg13jz/index.html

In Summary

·         Complaint. Kabarole District local government leaders argue that Fort Portal is a foreign name imposed on them by the British colonialists, adding that the proposed city should be given a local name, Kabarole.

By MONITOR TEAM

Kabarole.

A dispute has erupted between Fort Portal Municipality leaders and their Kabarole District local government counterparts over a proposal to change the name of the planned Fort Portal city to Kabarole city.

The row was sparked off when Mr Richard Rwabuhinga, the Kabarole District chairman, during a council meeting last week moved a motion to amend the earlier resolution passed by the same council to change the name of the proposed “Fort Portal tourism city’ to ‘Kabarole tourism city”.

The Kabarole District local government leaders argued that Fort Portal is a foreign name imposed on them by the British colonialists, adding that the proposed city should be given a local name, Kabarole which they said residents have a huge cultural attachment to.

They expressed fear that if the proposed city is name Fort Portal, the name Kabarole will cease to exist because the city area is expected to cover Fort Portal Municipality and Burahya County which constitute Kabarole District.

The Kabarole District local government leaders said the name Kabarole is of cultural significance to the native Batooro and synonymous with the Tooro kingdom, citing the location of King Oyo Nyimba’s palace on Kabarole hill that overlooks Fort Portal Town.

Fort Portal Municipality MP Alex Ruhunda said: “Kabarole District is the headquarters of the entire region and the name should be Kabarole, Fort Portal tourism city should stop confusion”.

However, Fort Portal Town mayor Rev Kintu Willy Muhanga said the municipal council is autonomous from Kabarole District local government, according to the Local Government Act.

“For example, Kabarole District Local Government has a chief administrative officer who is appointed by the central government and the municipal has a town clerk who is also appointed by the central government,” Rev Muhanga said.
“We are not answerable to the district though we are under Kabarole District,” he added.

He vowed to sue Kabarole District local government for its bid to change the name of the proposed city without the consent of the Fort Portal Municipal authority.
“The proposal to change Fort Portal Municipality to Fort Portal tourism city was passed (in 2014) after several consultations with stakeholders, including division councils, but this time, the district council left us behind, why?” Rev Muhanga wondered.

Mr Nyamungo Francis, the Fort Portal Municipality deputy town clerk, said: “As an urban authority, we are still pushing towards national vision of 2040 for Fort Portal tourism city, not Kabarole tourism city”.

He added that Kabarole District local government leaders were illegally trying to change the name of the proposed city.
Both Fort Portal Municipality and Kabarole District local government in 2014 passed a resolution to allow Fort Portal Municipality become a tourism city.
Mr Joram Bintamanya, the Fort Portal Division councillor, said: “According to the proposal, both names would be maintained and people should not worry about it at all.”
He added: “Should Fort Portal town be elevated to a city status, it will be Kabarole city and Fort Portal will become one of the city divisions of Kabarole city.”
Kabarole District used to cover the whole of Rwenzori sub-region until the late president Idi Amin carved Kasese (for Bakonjo) and Bundibugyo (for Bamba/Babwisi) out of Kabarole in a bid to resolve the then tribal conflicts.

Later, the size of Kabarole kept shrinking after Kyenjojo, Kamwenge, Kyegegwa and Bunyangabu districts were carved out of it during the NRM regime.

However, some analysts say the main reason behind the move by Kabarole District local government to hurriedly change the name of the proposed Fort Portal tourism city to Kabarole tourism city is the fear to lose jurisdiction, status, civil and political structures when Fort Portal town becomes Fort Portal tourism city.
According to the Local Government Act, the city can only be created when it has a population of 350,000 people living in the same area.

Mr Muhanga, the Fort Portal Town mayor, said currently Fort Portal has only 70,000 people.
He added that the proposal to annex some sub-counties of Bunyangabu district to Fort Portal should be effected to enable the population reach 350,000.

The Bishop of Rwenzori Diocese, Rt Rev Reuben Kisembo Amooti, cautioned the leaders against arguing about the name of the proposed city, calling upon them to instead focus on delivering quality social services to the people.

By Felix Basiime, Alex Ashaba & Scovia Atuhaire