In Luweero, a dispute has emerged between the Luwero District Chairperson Erastus Kibirango and the District National Resistance Movement (NRM) Party leader Ronald Ndawula regarding the renovation of the Kasana playground.
Kasana Playground, located in Luwero town council and initially established in the 1970s to promote sports activities, is currently in a state of disrepair, lacking basic facilities necessary for hosting district and national games.
Recently, Ndawula unveiled plans to redevelop the playground to make it suitable for hosting national games. He presented 100 bags of cement and sand to begin the process of renovating the playground’s perimeter wall. Ndawula, who is a former LC 5 Chairman, also proposed constructing dressing rooms for players and other necessary facilities.
However, Kibirango, while welcoming the support for the redevelopment, emphasized the importance of adhering to government procedures. He advised Ndawula to hand over the building materials to the district, which would then transfer them to the committee responsible for managing the playground on the district’s behalf. Kibirango mentioned that the District Council had already approved an annual budget of 100 million Ugandan Shillings for the redevelopment, potentially leading to duplicative efforts by Ndawula.
Ndawula, on the other hand, expressed reluctance to transfer the building materials to the district, citing concerns about bureaucracy and potential corruption affecting the project’s quality. He emphasized his significant contributions to the playground during his tenure as the LCIII Chairperson for the town council and as District Chairperson. Ndawula indicated that he would present the building plans to district technocrats, allowing them to approve or disapprove of the proposal.
It remains uncertain whether the district will approve Ndawula’s plan and permit him to proceed with the initial renovation work on the playground. This is the second time the two leaders have clashed over the playground’s fate. Earlier this year, Kibirango blocked Ndawula’s attempt to acquire part of the playground’s land for constructing party offices. In 2019, veterans acquired a land title for the parking yard of the playground, creating public controversy when they attempted to donate part of the land to the NRM party for office construction. Kibirango contested this move, warning the NRM secretariat and vowing to challenge the title in court, alleging forgery of land office signatures by the veterans to obtain the title. In response, the NRM Secretariat withdrew its interest in the land.
