MBARARA: Alcohol, Betting Crackdown Looms, City Council Set To Pass New Ordinance

By Amos Tayebwa
MBARARA

Mbarara City Council is set to tighten the screws on alcohol consumption and gambling activities, with leaders warning bar patrons, betting enthusiasts and operators to prepare for new restrictions.

The City Council has scheduled September 2, 2026, for a council meeting at which a proposed by-law regulating alcohol consumption, bars, gambling and sports betting within Mbarara City and its urban centres will be considered.

The move follows guidance from the Minister of Local Government, Balam Barugahara, who recently called for bars in urban centres across the country to be prohibited from opening before 3:00pm.

Barugahara later tasked local governments, including cities and districts, to sit through their respective councils, with the assistance of Resident City Commissioners (RCCs) and Resident District Commissioners (RDCs), to formulate ordinances regulating bars and gambling or betting centres.

Under the arrangement, individual local councils will determine the opening and closing hours for bars and other related businesses, alongside other guidelines contained in the proposed policies or by-laws.

Mbarara City Council Speaker Bony Tashobya Karutsya confirmed that council will meet on September 2 to deliberate on a by-law seeking to regulate alcohol consumption, bars, gambling and sports betting across Mbarara City.

He said the council has three ordinances lined up for consideration, including the regulation of alcohol and sports betting, parking of motor vehicles, and the loading and offloading of taxis and buses at taxi and bus parks.

The Speaker urged other city and district councils to follow suit and embrace the Minister’s guidance on regulating alcohol and betting activities.

Meanwhile, Gerald Tukamuhebwa, the Deputy RCC in charge of Mbarara City South Division, said security is ready to enforce whatever regulations are approved by the City Council.

A montage of Gerald Tukamuhebwa, Deputy RCC Mbarara City South (L) and Ronald Taremwa, the Mbarara City Deputy Mayor

“Once the City Council comes up with a by-law on alcohol and gambling regulation, as security and different stakeholders, we shall be there to assist them in implementation. As far as I know we are there to ensure all things are done in the right way and the right procedure, and to make sure that the guidelines and the by-laws that are put in place are adhered to and ensure that we have got trade order within our City. We shall work hand in hand with the local councils to ensure that we have kept law and order,” Tukamuhebwa said.

He also appealed to alcohol consumers to use the morning hours productively by engaging in work before heading to bars and malwa joints later in the day.

He urged those who drink to do so responsibly.

Mbarara City Deputy Mayor Ronald Taremwa said the City has already embarked on preparations for an ordinance regulating alcohol and betting activities following the Minister’s guidance.

Taremwa said the process will involve consultations in which councillors will be required to return to their respective areas and seek views from bar owners, bar attendants, consumers, parents, games and betting house operators.

He said the majority of people in Mbarara have welcomed the Minister’s proposal and are prepared to support it, although some sections of the population have opposed the idea.

According to Taremwa, some of those opposed argue that the policy infringes on their economic rights because their businesses could be affected, while others maintain that they have a right to drink whenever they want as long as they can afford it.

“As a City here, through consultations we shall come up with appropriate time that we can put in our ordinance as the time within which one is supposed to open the bar or engage in those alcoholic activities. We shall also come up with sanctions or offences, if you do this that contravenes with this ordinance then you are supposed to face the law and be charged with these offences,” Taremwa said.

The proposed restrictions have already triggered changes among some bar operators in Mbarara.

Since the Minister issued the guidelines, some bars reportedly panicked and started opening at 3:00pm, while others have continued waiting for the City Council’s final decision on the implementation of the new regulations.

With the September 2 council sitting now looming, bar owners, alcohol consumers and gambling operators are waiting to see how far Mbarara City will go in enforcing the proposed crackdown.