Taxi drivers, boda boda riders share lockdown survival tales

Atotal of 60 people have been invited as members of the Anglican and Catholic churches to commemorate Martyrs Day on June 3 due to Covid-19.

Tomorrow, taxis drivers and other public transport service providers will resume the scramble for passengers yet again as the country gradually eases the lockdown measures issued to stem the spread of coronavirus.

Public transport operators have been out of work for more than two months following the ban on carrying passengers issued by President Museveni in March.

With their source of income gone, many struggled to find alternative ways to make ends meet.

Mr Musa Kibenge, a boda boda rider, says life took a turn for the worse when his employer continued to demand daily remittances despite the hard times.

“I had to return my bike to my boss since he used to demand for money yet I wasn’t earning anything and was not doing any deliveries as he thought,” Mr Kibenge says.

He had to find another way out: “Unlike my colleagues, I was lucky that I got to hawk someone’s eggs and got a day’s pay of between Shs10,000 and Shs15,000,” he adds.

Mr Geofrey Maiso, also a boda boda rider and father of three at Kasanga Market Kampala, says it was through the deliveries he did on behalf of the pharmacies that he was able to earn a living.

“I would do deliveries for the pharmacies near my stage and get paid for each delivery whose range varied from place to place,” Mr Maiso says, and adds: “And my other clientele I used to ferry before [lockdown] would also ask me to purchase and deliver various items for them.”
Some boda boda riders were compelled to hire out their bikes an average fee of Shs10,000 per day.

Mr Awali Kakaire, a taxi driver that used to ply the Mbale-Kampala route, had to turn to bricklaying to earn a living.

“I had no option since I had exhausted all my savings and resorted to bricklaying because I couldn’t just look on as my family starved,” Mr Kakaire says.

“It is by God’s grace that I had some [sweet] potatoes, which had prior to the closure of the transport, neared harvesting and we have since been surviving on those but they are over,” he adds.

Mr Gerald Bbosa, a taxi driver on the Kampala-Mutungo-Bbina route, says he was forced into hawking, something he had vowed never to do.

“It is three weeks now since I started hawking tomatoes and sometimes passion fruits. The transaction would on a fruitful day fetch about Shs13,000,” he says.

Mr Joshua Tenywa, a taxi driver on the Kampala-Bugoloobi-Luzira route, says he used to help traders deliver their merchandise in Namuwongo market.

“I have been hiring a bicycle at Shs5,000 and have been using to do deliveries of food stuffs for market traders in Namuwongo market,” Mr Tenywa says, adding: “It was at first hard to get customers but I have now gained trust of most clients and this earns me between Shs15,000 to Shs20,000 on a fruitful day.”

Silver lining
Mr Stephen Munialo, a bicycle mechanic in Munkaga Village, Bungokho Sub-county in Mbale District, says made a killing during the lockdown.

“The beginning was a bit tough because I was not used to addressing a big clientele at time but I eventually adjusted accordingly. I got a bigger customer base something the forced me to ferry my two brothers to help with the repairs,” Mr Munialo says.

Besides the repairs, Mr Munialo decided to stock more bicycle spare parts which he supplied to other mechanics.
“I decided to expand my workspace and stocked more spare parts for other mechanics to get them from shop,” he adds.

Mr Abdul-Rahuman Ssebagala, a mechanic at G.J Auto Garage in Wabigalo Village, Makindye Division in Kampala, reveals that he extended support to his staff when the lockdown was first effected.

“When the lockdown started, we gave each of our staff 5kgs of maize flour, 5kgs of rice and 3kgs of sugar to see them through the period [lockdown],” Mr Ssebagala says.

“Each of them was also given Shs60,000 in form of support for other needs that they may incur,” he adds.

Since their biggest clientele, the private cars, were off the road, the situation had compelled Mr Ssebagala’s administration to have some of the staff keep home.

Last resort
Some mechanics never received any support or formal communication from their employers and, therefore, decided opted to establish their own facilities.

Mr Alex Luswata, a former mechanic at the M and K Garage and resident in Nassuti Village in Mukono District, says he could not look as his family starved.

“The pressures from my family compelled me to look for a solution and that is how I ended up hawking hens [off-layers and Kroilers],” Mr Luswata says.

“From that I was able to get Shs2,000 off every transaction I made. It was, therefore, up to me to ensure that I sell out more birds on a daily basis,” he adds.

Mr Yasiin Ssematimba, the chairperson of Kampala Operational Taxi Stages Association (Kotsa), says the period that they have not been working depleted all the little resources many operators had.

“Each stage has a Sacco but given the year had just started, many had not accumulated a lot. The drivers used the little they had saved to buy food for their families. We also advised those who could not survive in the city to go back to their villages,” Mr Ssematimba adds.

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