Published on 17/06/2024
Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) officials are under fire as lawmakers scrutinize their failure to collect Shillings 198.5 billion in property rate arrears, exacerbating the city’s woes. The neglected funds could have revitalized the city’s roads, plagued by deep potholes and stagnant repairs, leaving residents disillusioned with their urban management.
The December 2023 Auditor General’s report revealed that although KCCA had Shillings 252 billion in property rate arrears, only Shillings 52.3 billion was collected in the 2022/23 financial year, leaving 198.568 billion outstanding.
Vice Chairperson of the House’s Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE), Allan Mayanja, also the Nakaseke Central Constituency MP questioned KCCA officials about the reasons behind the increasing property rate arrears.
In response, Robert Nowere, the KCCA’s Director for Revenue Collection, attributed the arrears to regular property re-evaluations, which have resulted in higher rates. He also cited low staffing levels and insufficient transport for staff to collect the taxes as contributing factors.
“We are very understaffed, operating at just above 50%. With close to 400,000 properties in Kampala, we have around 20 staff members collecting property rates. Additionally, there is only one vehicle per division, most of which are very old,” Nowere explained.
Kasilo County MP Elijah Okupa suggested that KCCA should consider using motorcycles instead of cars to navigate the city’s heavy traffic and reach properties that are difficult to access by vehicle.
Equally, Nathan Itungo, the Kashari South Constituency MP raised concerns about residents’ willingness to pay property taxes without seeing improvements in services such as roads. Dorothy Kisaka, KCCA’s Executive Director, acknowledged this issue and emphasized the need to improve service delivery to justify tax demands.
Yona Musinguzi, the Ntungamo Municipality legislator criticized KCCA for not updating its property tax records, recounting that he still receives tax notices for a property he sold four years ago. Mpindi Bumali (PWD Rep.) questioned the actions taken against non-payers and highlighted the recurring issue of arrears in KCCA’s audit reports.
In response, Nowere noted that KCCA has digitized revenue collection and created a unit for revenue public awareness to improve compliance. He also mentioned efforts to educate taxpayers about the importance of contributing to service delivery.
But Dr. Timothy Batuwa, the Jinja South Division Representative questioned why the 52.3 billion collected in property rates was not reflected in KCCA’s records. Nowere clarified that all collections go directly to the consolidated fund through the Uganda Revenue Authority tax collection account.
The Committee decided to allow KCCA officials time to reconcile their financial statements after MPs raised concerns about discrepancies in the figures.
