The Kampala City Festival is a signature brand that draws in multitudes in Kampala every first Sunday of October to celebrate culture, unity and provides immense networking opportunities for business owners. PHOTO BY RACHEL MABALA
Some thing is happening to Uganda’s social life. Some thing we are yet to understand.
Just last week we were shocked to hear that the Nyege Nyege festival had been banned by Minister of Ethics and Integrity Fr Simon Lokdo.
After striking a deal with the festival’s organisers, the festival was restored with stringent conditions.
Now, we have been hit by another bombshell. This year’s Kampala City carnival has been cancelled.
The revelation was made by the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) executive director, Ms Jennifer Musisi who said that the money meant to organize the three-day annual entertainment event will be diverted to other productive things to benefit all the city dwellers.
Ms Musisi told journalists in Kampala, on Wednesday that it doesn’t make sense to spend money on entertainment yet services in the city are poor.
“We spend about Shs500 million in organising the festival but we realised that if we divert this money to schools and hospitals, it would be better because some of the people who come to the festival are the very people who go to seek services in our city health centres and schools,” she said before adding that the authority expects to collect Shs1.9b from partners this year.
KCCA ED arrives at a past edition of the carnival. FILE PHOTO
Ms Musisi said the money they had collected from traders for the festival that had been scheduled for October 5 would be refunded.
Kampala festival, which is the biggest street party in East Africa is a signature brand that draws multitudes to Kampala every October to celebrate culture, unity and social life.
With Kampala in a constant state of change and regeneration, the festival projects the image of the City as a happy, cultural and warm place to be while promoting positive change to its public realm.
Every first week of October, Kampala becomes animated with flamboyant sights, vibrant sounds and lively rhythms in concert with an array of floats winding through the streets with dancers on show as they spin, whirl and twirl to mesmeric beats of celebration along the festival route revealing all facets that uniquely depict the city’s profusion of brilliant culture and social life.