The longstanding power struggle between Kampala Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago and the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) executive leadership escalated sharply today, culminating in a rare rebuke by a parliamentary committee that dismissed both parties over disputes surrounding critical accountability reports.
The clash has highlighted persistent fractures undermining governance in Uganda's capital city.
Lord Mayor Lukwago expressed frustration at being sidelined from key accountability processes.
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"I was informed of today informally but late," he said, adding that a management report central to the proceedings "wasn't processed collectively by the KCCA," leaving him "nothing to report about action taken."
He stressed the urgent need to "institutionalize the mechanism of reports," accusing the authority of systematically marginalizing his office.
"This marginalization is a historical problem," Lukwago lamented, a view echoed by MP Nathan Itungo, who observed, "Lord Mayor seems to be facing a historical problem."
KCCA Executive Director Sharifah Buzeki, the accounting officer responsible for processing and submitting parliamentary responses to Auditor General's reports, defended her role.
Yet Lukwago challenged this, asking, "If they say I never reported to parliament I can be impeached. Are you as parliament saying I have no involvement in accountability?" He further revealed a breakdown in communication: "Not even a copy to the response. We have not internally harmonized the response."
The parliamentary committee, frustrated by the evident lack of cooperation, dismissed both Lukwago and Buzeki in an unusual display of dissatisfaction with the KCCA's internal discord.
Despite the acrimony, a possible breakthrough emerged when ED Buzeki agreed, "We have no problem taking the report to be looked into by the political wing."
Lukwago confirmed the report would be shared and highlighted a specific concern: "The audit query relating to Kiteezi is key. We need one week."
Today's confrontation underscores ongoing administrative and political tensions within KCCA, raising serious questions about transparency, shared governance, and the effective delivery of services to Kampala's residents.
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While the agreement to share the report signals a tentative truce, the underlying power struggles between the city's political and administrative leadership remain a formidable barrier to cohesive leadership.
