Traders, Museveni fail to agree on loans

Meanwhile, for the second day running, traders held to their guns even after the President asked them to open shops with immediate effect as he seeks to deal with the matter.
He repeated the same call in yesterday’s meeting with traders, but it remains unclear whether the traders will budge.

By press time neither Mr Kayondo nor Mr Ssekitto were picking up their mobile phones despite repeated attempts to reach them. Business remained pretty much slow in down-town Kampala as most traders continued to close their shops in protest.

Police and other security forces also continued to trek all over Kampala, with heavy deployment in busy Central Business, where the strike seemed more effective.

Retailers, buyers stranded
Striking traders were largely peaceful. Most of them were engaging each other in casual talk, as others played board games. Customers were stranded too. Many thought shops would be opened today.

Mr Hassan Ssali needed to purchase electrical equipment, but he could not because his supplier had closed shop, while one Zubair needed to supply orders to South Sudan but he too failed because his supplier was on strike.

Banks with a presence around Kikuubo and Owino Market, both hubs for wholesale and retail trade, did not open save for Equity Bank.

iladu@ug.nationmedia.com