EXPOSED! Nicoz tycoon & Co set to lose Mbarara City North Division multi-million deals over defaulting

The firm, responsible for Mbarara City Street Parking is at risk of losing the contract after defaulting about 56 weeks including the previous financial year. They have exempted themselves Shs108,960,000 to Mbarara City North Division.

According to a report produced by the Finance committee of Mbarara City North Division, it was revealed that some contractors have defaulted very badly which has affected local revenue performance in Mbarara City North specifically in Businesses licences and market dues.

Contractors or Service providers including Woodfix technical services Ltd have adamantly refused to comply with the summons by Mbarara city North Division. Woodfix technical services ltd is one of them.

Other contractors that have defaulted include, Paul Barekye for mobile vans have defaulted 14 weeks worth UGx 3.8m, Wilberforce Arinaitwe for Rwebikoona daily market has defaulted 10 weeks with 4.2m, Biharwe market bikade traders have defaulted  14 weeks worth 4.6m and more others.

According to the chairman of the Finance committee, Councilor John Bosco, many complaint letters regarding tenders on payment have been written to the City Council for onward  management but no feedback has ever been received as the Division.  He added that there are poor contractors’ positions.

According to the council of Mbarara City North Division that sat recently, councilors led by their Speaker Silver Mugisha resolved that if  all the defaulters fail to pay by the end of this January 2023,  the Division will seek for the authority from Mbarara City, to terminate their contract.

“We signed contracts with these people and if they don’t comply we shall be guided by the same contracts and terminate them, we may even end up dragging them to court guided by the terms and conditions within those contracts,” said Speaker Mugisha.

 Mugisha added that as the division they suspect that there must be some connivance between some big officials at Mbarara City Council and some of these contractors who have defaulted.

He said that as the division currently they are stuck, they cannot deliver service when they lack revenue. According to the information from the office of Treasurer of Mbarara city north,  Woodfix Technical services has not up to now deposited any single coin to clear its debt.

There have been several complaints from the people of Mbarara especially those that own vehicles that Woodfix technical services ltd have harassed them by double charging and charging some of the places that are not gazetted in their line of jurisdiction.  Many complaints have been raised but the responsible authorities do not act.

There are also complaints that Woodfix connived with some officials in Mbarara City council and illegally manipulated in the contract that was meant to take for a period of one year now to five years.

Richard Mugisha, the Mbarara City Deputy Town Clerk revealed that the powers of revenue collection lie in the hands of Divisions. That contracts are awarded at the City centre but the Divisions are the contract managers. He said that the contracts managers are the ones following up the implementation.

However, Mugisha said that what he knows with the tender for street parking, is that it is Mbarara City South Division which is largely in-charge of management of that contract. That this tender is a shared revenue source—some percentage goes to Mbarara City North Division and the bigger percentage remains with Mbarara City South Division.

“I want to tell you that the contracts are so elaborate. In the case of defaulting we evoke provisions in the contract about defaulting because the contract contains obligations of each party that is the employer which is Mbarara City and the  contractor or the service provider which is for example Woodfix technical services ltd.  Another thing which I must remind some people at Mbarara City South Division is that the contract for Woodfix is for a period of  only three years not five years per say. And I must also remind them that the Division has no powers to terminate someone’s contract but it can only recommend to us and we take the action,” said Mugisha, the Deputy Town Clerk Mbarara.

He added thus: “the contract for Woodfix Technical Services is still running. Where there are issues they should be reported to the PDE (Procurement Disposal Entity) which is us Mbarara City because the Division is a user department. It submits to the entity then the entity takes up those issues that can be sorted out administratively. In case of need for mediation or termination of the contract they should report to PDU, which is the Procurement Disposal Unit.”