Luwero LCV chair, NRM district leader disagree over development of playground

Luwero, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The LCV Chairperson Luwero Erastus Kibirango and the District National Resistance Movement Party leader Ronald Ndawula have disagreed over the redevelopment of the Kasana playground.

Kasana Playground located in Luwero town council was started in the 1970s to promote sports activities. It is reported that President Idi Amin offered tractors that cleared the land for the playground after finding civil servants playing soccer on uneven surfaces.

The playground which is under the management of the district is in a poor state to host district and national games over lack of basic facilities.

Recently Ndawula announced plans to redevelop the playground to host national games. Ndawula paraded 100 bags of cement and sand as materials to kick-start the painting of the perimeter wall of the playground.

Ndawula who is also a former LC 5 Chairman also unveiled a plan to construct the dressing room for the players and other facilities.

But Kibirango says that although they welcome the support towards redeveloping the playground, all well-wishers must follow the government procedures before embarking on the plans.

Kibirango advised Ndawula to hand over the 100 bags of cement and other building materials to the district which will then transfer them to the committee that it entrusted to run the playground on its behalf.

He adds that the District council has already approved a budget of 100 million Shillings per financial year and plans to redevelop the ground, which activities may be duplicated by Ndawula.

But Ndawula insists that he is not ready to hand over the building materials to the district citing bureaucracy and corruption tendencies that may lead to some works not being done as desired.

Ndawula says that he expected the district to welcome his efforts to redevelop the playground since he is the same person who conducted major works on it while still the LCIII Chairperson for the town council and as District chairperson.

Ndawula says that he will only present the building plan to district technocrats and they are free to approve it or not.

It’s not yet clear whether the district will approve the plan and allow Ndawula to conduct the preliminary paintings on the perimeter wall of the playground. This is the second time the two leaders clash over the playground.

Early this year, Kibirango blocked plans by Ndawula to acquire part of the land belonging to Kasana playground to construct party offices.

In 2019, the veterans acquired a land title on the parking yard for the playground and registered it in the name of Retired Lieutenant Ibrahim Ssenyange, Ret. Lt. Mathias Kaddu, Retired Captain Muhammad Mubiru, and the late Musa Kateregga, who represent the Association.

In May this year, the veterans moved to donate part of the playground land to the NRM party through Ndawula to construct party offices a move that created public condemnation.

Kibirango wrote to the NRM secretariat warning it against the move and vowed to challenge the title in court accusing the veterans of forging signatories of land offices to acquire it.

The NRM Secretariat responded by withdrawing interest in the land.

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