Greater Kabale Tea nursery bed operators have today tasked City lawyer Patrick Kiconco Katabazi of Pathway Advocates to give them accountability of the money that was meant to pay them from NAADS
According to the Auditor General’s report of 2021/2022, NAADs advanced Sh39bn shillings to Kiconco’s law firm to pay off tea farmers who had sued the government for having not bought their tea seedling thus incurring losses which was later settled out of courts for the government to compensate them.
However, some farmers claim not to have received their payments from Counsel Kiconco whom they had hired to demand the government on their behalf.
In the meeting that was held on Tuesday 19th September 2023, at Kabale district Rukiiko hall between Tea Nursery bed operators, district authorities and their lawyer from three districts of Rukiga, Kabale, Rubanda including Denis Nzeirwe, Fere Mpirirwe, Can. Enock Kazoba, Moses Kakuru, Biryomumeisho peace Kirasha, Niwagaba Saul, Monica Muhumuza among others demanded for transparency and accountability from Katabazi which will help them to know how much they demand from government.
Farmers claim that they only received 37% of the money they were supposed to be paid and they are demanding 63% but the incurred a lot of expenses and some are still in debts. In a heated meeting the operators told lawyer Kiconco not to take them as illiterates told him to better pay or take legal action.
They added that they were supposed to give Counsel Katabazi 30% of the money they demand but instead he allegedly took more than what was agreed.
They also say that they were forced to sign documents before reading through and from there he stopped picking their calls.
On his part, Lawyer Kiconco Patrick Katabazi said the said that COVID-19 lockdown affected their smooth flow of their matters because meetings where not allowed.
Additional reporting by Kankiriho Obed
