Uganda Opposition Party Challenges Closure of Offices in Court

The chairman of the People’s Front for Freedom (PFF) and outgoing Lord Mayor of Kampala, Erias Lukwago, has threatened legal action against city authorities after the party’s head offices were sealed off over an alleged ground rent arrears dispute.

Officials from the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) on Friday closed the PFF offices located along Katonga Road, citing failure to pay 20 million Ugandan shillings( over $5,000USD) in outstanding ground rent.

Our correspondent reports that the party chairman described the enforcement action as erroneous and accused KCCA officials of misinterpreting the legal framework governing property rate taxation.

He argued that existing laws exempt non-commercial buildings from paying property rate tax, maintaining that the premises currently operating as PFF’s head office are owner-occupied and used for political party activities rather than commercial purposes.

Lukwago said the building is occupied by its proprietor and is being used to run party activities, insisting that it does not qualify for the tax category cited by city enforcement officers.

He further accused the KCCA enforcement team of unlawfully encroaching on private property and wrongfully sealing the premises.

The development adds to mounting tensions between opposition political actors and city authorities, with the legality of the enforcement measures now likely to be tested before the judiciary.