Kitgum vendors abandon temporary site
Defiant. Vendors on the streets of Kitgum Municipality after abandoning the market site. Photo by Denis Opoka
What you need to know:
- The main market will have lockups, stalls, banking institutions, beauty care centre, parking spaces, storage facilities, open spaces. It will accommodate more than 1,300 vendors.
A section of Kitgum main market vendors who were relocated to a temporary site in Pandwong Division in Kitgum Municipality have abandoned the facility, saying it is far from their customers.
“We could not keep that site where our perishable goods are rotting. We opted to occupy this open space where we can be accessed easily by the customers during this festive season,’’ Ms Concy Atim, the chairperson of Kitgum Main Market Vendors’ Association, said.
“At the onset of the relocation, some vendors refused to relocate at the gazetted site, meaning our customers could buy from them instead,” she added.
The vendors are currently camped at the open space on Pager Crescent Road, Pager roundabout and Market Street.
Genesis
In January, more than 1,000 vendors were relocated to the airfield site to pave way for the construction of a Shs23b market.
The market is being constructed under the second phase of the Market and Agricultural Trade Improvement (MATIP) programme with funding from the African Development Bank.
The facility is being constructed by Chinese State Construction Engineering Company Ltd for 24 months.
The Resident District Commissioner, Mr Williams Komakech, said they had a crisis meeting where they agreed that the vendors first carry out their business during the festive season.
“After the festive season, we will see a way of taking them back to the known temporary site as other issues are ironed out,’’ Mr Komakech said.
In November, vendors at the relocated site stormed the office of Resident District Commissioner, demanding an explanation as to why they were not acting against those who had refused to move to the new site.
The market will have lockups, stalls, banking institutions, beauty care centre, parking spaces, storage facilities, open spaces. It will be accommodate more than 1,300 vendors.
Capacity
The main market will have lockups, stalls, banking institutions, beauty care centre, parking spaces, storage facilities, open spaces. It will accommodate more than 1,300 vendors.
