Daniel, Allan Omara

What he is not telling you is the routine battles he fights in spaces outside the public domain. It is a delicate balance of “leadership” promoting the country at the same time use the same tool to become a political activist. Business needs political stability to thrive.

I now accept. Uganda’s economic stagnation is due to corruption.

Without donations, I am genuinely curious how this was funded. This connects to a debate I was having recently about whether anyone, however competent, can deliver real change by working through our current system. Someone pushed back and gave the example of Solomon Serwanjja in Bamutakudde. My point was that Solomon is working around the system rather than through it, using his own networks and influence. And that is the part that worries me for a government office like LC1. The goal should be to reform the system so it delivers for residents on its own, so that the next LC1 after Solomon, most likely someone without his contacts or his reach, inherits a structure that keeps working for the people regardless. Of course, this takes nothing away from Solomon. A man who decides to do something rather than wait for the system to to fix itself is admirable, full stop. So when Erycom says Buyala was lit without a single donation, I am genuinely curious to understand how. I hope he did not simply fund it out of his own pocket, because as admirable as that would be, it is the same trap. A village lit by one man's money stays lit only for as long as that one man is the LC1 chairperson. Proper service, as my years in rural development have taught me, is building something that outlives you so even when you are not around, it keeps working.

Mr. Wekesa we are not just making noise of course you’re not the only beneficiary. We are not stupid. In fact, we appreciate how far you have taken the tourism industry. We are saying, with due respect sir the political environment could accelerate growth, potentially doubling tourism revenues from the current $1.62 Bn. According to MOFPED Ug government is targeting $5 Bn in annual tourism receipts by 2030. But fix the politics and those numbers could even quadruple. How can you be home to over half of the world’s mountain gorillas, yet Rwanda’s gorilla tourism generates ~ $200M according to World Bank, btw with a smaller gorilla population but you register $25-$30M with a bigger gorilla population. You think this is magic? Politics politics, right now a tourist would rather go to Rwanda with no level 4 “red alert”🚨 to see gorillas 🦍 bypassing the largest population found in Ug. UBOS says tourism directly employs about 876,512 workers in Ug 🇺🇬 , these are our brothers and sisters of course we understand how important it is for the industry to thrive. Politics and economics are inseparable. You, Wekesa can’t accept this because you fear speaking up. If government does anything than can potentially affect tourism speak up not only during outbreaks, tell them you will have cash flow issues if they continue sending drones, torturing and abducting people, tourists will fear basements and drones. 😀

BUYALA VILLAGE IS LIGHTING Within Just 73 Days, We Have Installed 73 Solar Lights Around @BuyalaMityanaRd Village. We've Achieved This Without Any Donation(s). I Thank Residents Of Buyala For Entrusting Me With The Office Of The Chairman LC1. Office 0414 660101 www. Buyala.ug

No power in surrounding areas. Perfect time to invite your babe who is not your babe. 😃

I happened to come across a Call-Off Order issued by Kiira Motors Corporation, dated 7 April 2026, for the supply of 100 Kayoola electric buses (50 seven-metre buses and 50 ten-metre buses), 80 electric vehicle chargers and associated shipping services. The total value of the order is USD 13.9215 million. What caught my attention, however, was not necessarily the value of the procurement, but the fact that the identified supplier is CHTC Motor Co. Ltd, a company based in Beijing, China. This got me thinking and asking a few questions. Not necessarily because I have concluded that something is wrong, but as a concerned Ugandan who genuinely wants to understand our automotive industry and the extent of value addition taking place locally. First, what exactly do we mean when we describe Kiira Motors as a vehicle manufacturer? Are we talking about a company that manufactures vehicles locally, an assembly plant that puts together imported components or vehicle kits, or a combination of both? I ask this because there is a fundamental difference between manufacturing and assembly, even though both are important components of an automotive industry. Manufacturing, in its broader industrial sense, involves transforming raw materials and components into products through processes such as fabrication, welding, body construction, painting and production of vehicle systems. Assembly, on the other hand, involves putting together components, systems or pre-manufactured parts, often sourced from different suppliers, to produce a complete vehicle. Now, looking at this particular Call-Off Order, a few things caught my attention: The supplier is a Chinese company, CHTC Motor Co. Ltd. The procurement schedule describes the supply of 100 Kayoola electric vehicles as complete vehicle products, with specified carrying capacities, ranges, motor power and battery capacities. The contract provides for pre-shipment inspection and acceptance at the supplier's premises. It also provides for further inspection and acceptance upon delivery at the Kiira Vehicle Plant in Jinja. The payment structure even refers to a final 10% payment upon completion of manufacturing. This raises some questions that I would genuinely appreciate clarity on. Are these 100 buses being manufactured in China and subsequently delivered to Uganda, or are they being supplied as components or kits for final assembly in Jinja? What specific manufacturing processes are actually undertaken at the Kiira Vehicle Plant? Do we locally fabricate the chassis, manufacture the vehicle bodies, assemble battery systems, undertake motor integration, welding and painting, or are most of these components imported? What percentage of the total value of a Kayoola bus is actually generated through local manufacturing, labour, engineering and other domestic inputs? How do we distinguish between the value of a vehicle carrying a Ugandan brand name and the actual value addition taking place within Uganda? Let me be clear: I am not suggesting that vehicle assembly is a bad thing. Far from it. Assembly is an important starting point in developing an automotive industry. Countries have used it to build technical capacity, develop supply chains, create employment and progressively move into more sophisticated manufacturing. But I also think we must be honest and precise about where we are on that journey. There is a difference between owning an automotive company, assembling vehicles locally, manufacturing vehicles locally and developing indigenous automotive technology and production capabilities. These are all important milestones, but they are not necessarily the same thing. My concern is that as Uganda continues to invest in industrialisation, we should be able to clearly account for the level of local content, technology transfer, domestic value addition and industrial capacity being created through such investments. After all, the bigger ambition should not simply be to have Ugandan-branded vehicles on Ugandan roads. It should be to progressively build the capacity to design, manufacture, engineer and produce more of those vehicles here at home. I would therefore welcome an explanation from those with a better understanding of Kiira Motors' production processes. Perhaps there is more happening at the Jinja plant than this particular procurement document reveals, and I would be happy to be enlightened. As Ugandans, we should be able to ask these questions, understand the answers and appreciate the progress being made. Industrialisation should not just be about what we call ourselves; it should also be about what we are actually capable of producing. Just asking, as a concerned Ugandan who wants to understand.