Former Utoda chairman Musa Katongole dies

Haji Musa Katongole, the former chairman of the defunct Uganda Taxi Operators and Drivers Association (Utoda) is dead.

Katongole died at TMR Hospital in Nalya, a Kampala suburb where he was admitted recently.

Utoda was a powerful public transport body that at one time managed all taxi parks in Kampala and other major towns around the country.

However, in 2011, Kampala Capital City Authority cancelled the body’s contract to manage taxis.

KCCA estimated that Utoda was collecting over Shs1 billion from an estimated 7,000 commuter taxis but often failed to remit the  mandatory Shs390 million to the city authority, every month.

Utoda bosses and operatives were also accused of brutalising taxi operators and operating with impunity.

After the collapse of Utoda, Katongole teamed up with colleagues to start Awakula Ennume Transport Services and bought a fleet of buses to offer public transport services.

Katongole has been a close confidant to Hajji Prince Kassim Nakibinge, the titular head of the Islam in Uganda.