MV Kalangala misses major servicing

Kalangala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT  |  MV Kalangala, the Marine Vessel that plies the Entebbe – Kalangala route has missed servicing and maintenance again.

The vessel is supposed to undergo servicing annually. However, the marine vessel despite undergoing incomplete servicing in March 2018 has not been taken for routine repairs.

MV Kalangala has one operating propeller, three dysfunctional lavatory units, a dysfunctional crane and poor lighting.

Other non-functioning parts of the vessel include the ice making machine.

One of the Vessel engineers Kassim Mukasa says well as the vessel can sail on water, no one knows what has happened to the vessel’s buoyance tanks for the last one and a half years.

“For instance, paint has been peeling off and if the marine paint gets off, that means there is a lot of rusting going on beneath in the ballistic tanks. If they rust, there are high chances that they can easily damage the vessel’s capacity to remain buoyant and in the end, a vessel may sink after being filled with water,” Mukasa says.

Kalangala leaders and the business operators especially in the tourism sector believe the vessel should not be taken for repairs and maintenance at this time since it is the only peak season when business operators in the area get more money.

“If they failed to take the vessel for servicing in the right time, no one should think of taking it until the end of the festive season. We cannot alarm the country that Kalangala has no safe transport means,” says Robert Ssebalamu, the treasurer, Ssese Islands Tourism Development Association.

Sadala Musoke, the Operator of the MV Kalangala says government is still earmarking resources to have the Marine Vessel taken for major servicing. He however says that in the meantime the vessel will transport people and cargo to and from Kalangala during the festive season.

MV Kalangala has capacity of transporting up to 164 tons of Cargo. However, it usually goes without any cargo being loaded. 

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