Sugarcane farmers in Bunyoro have appealed to the government and the National Resistance Movement (NRM) to take immediate action regarding what they describe as impunity and unfair closures of weighbridges in the sub-region.
Under their umbrella body, the Bunyoro Sugarcane Farmers' Cooperative Union Ltd, they voiced their concerns on Wednesday during a meeting attended by hundreds of farmers in Masindi.
Mahmoud Kazimbiraine, the chairman of the union, stated that previously, independent weighbridges had been put up to ensure that each farmer could accurately determine the weight of their produce.
He noted that these weighbridges were essential in countering Kinyara Sugar Ltd's monopoly, enabling farmers to sell to other sugar millers that provide more competitive prices.
This, he claimed, has led to Kinyara's jealousy and subsequent sabotage of the weighbridges.
In January, the Ministry of Trade, Industries and Cooperatives ordered the immediate closure of weighbridges in Madindi following reports of widespread sugarcane poaching and sale
The weighbridges were later reopened following a petition from the union to the Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja.
Nabbanja issued a letter on February 25, instructing Otafiire to remove police from the weighbridges and allow farmers to resume their business.
"I am in receipt of a petition from the sugarcane farmers under the Bunyoro Sugarcane Farmers Cooperative Union Limited alleging disruptions and immense inconvenience occasioned onto them by police officers in their transactions with sugar factories," the premier wrote.
"The blocking of their sugarcane-loaded vehicles from accessing these weighbridges has caused them not only too much unnecessary suffering but very big losses in their businesses," she added.
Nabbanja further directed Otafiire to investigate the circumstances surrounding the closure and report back with findings and recommendations.
However, on Wednesday, the union reported fresh closures of the weighbridges, and impunity at the hands of police authorities.
Kazimbiraine explained that while they initially used Kinyara's weighbridge, it was insufficient to accommodate the volume of farmers, with around 400 trucks arriving daily.
This prompted them to establish their own weighbridges.
The creation of these weighbridges has led to tensions between the union and Kinyara, with the latter claiming that the new weighbridges facilitate the theft of cane from their estates—an allegation the union denies.
Kinyara accuses the union and other millers of poaching cane from the company's registered farmers and weighing it at the contested weighbridges.
"Kinyara Sugar Ltd are alleging that these weigh bridges are helping people to steal their cane. But this is just a mere allegation. They have not come up with proof," Kazimbiraine stated.
During the meeting, union members also accused police officials of constantly collaborating with Kinyara to hinder farmers from using the weighbridges, further claiming that Kinyara was attempting to undermine competition from other millers by stealing farmers' sugarcane.
However, Julius Allan Hakiza, the police spokesperson for the Albertine region, refuted these allegations, stating that the police do not support Kinyara in obstructing union farmers.
He clarified that they were only safeguarding weighbridges permitted by the Ministry of Trade, Industries, and Cooperatives, which requested police enforcement to monitor them.
"So, we are not on either side. We are there to reinforce the Ministry's enforcement whose mandate is the monitoring of those weighbridges that belong to them. So the issue of sugar cane clearly, we are not part of it. So, who who alleges must approve." Hakiza said.
What Farmers Want
Kazimbiraine expressed to journalists that their primary demand is for the Ministry of Trade to uphold its policy of a liberalized economy and trade, allowing the Union to sell to the highest bidder.
"We as farmers, this policy should also benefit us. We don't support monopoly in our crop," Kazimbiraine said.
"Besides we as a union many of our farmers grow sugarcane independent of any factory. When those farmers bring their cane, we have an inalienable right to sell that cane to whoever gives us the highest price. We would not encourage the idea of only one factory buying our cane. When this was the case, Kinyara used to buy our cane at shs. 60,000-shs. 80,000 the moment other competitors came in they are offering shs. 116500. At one time they were buying sugarcane at shs 180,000," he added.
Kazimbiraine asked the government to end closures of weighbridges in the sub region.
Stephen Mugisha, a sugarcane farmer and the National Resistance Movement (NRM) chairperson for Labong Sub County in Masindi district, lamented what he described as unfair monopolism and price reductions imposed by Kinyara.
"They want to monopolize the market and dictate prices, which is unjust. They've slashed prices from Shs 180,000 to Shs 110,000, while transportation costs remain high," Mugisha said.
He added, "Our sugarcane can go unharvested for up to 30 months, and we rely on it for our financial survival. We need access to weighbridges so we can support our families and send our children to school."
During the meeting, some sugar cane farmers accused certain political leaders of siding with Kinyara to frustrate them and threatened to boycott the NRM in the upcoming elections if their concerns are not addressed.
Julius Mani, a sugarcane farmer in Masindi, urged the NRM and the government to intervene, emphasizing that their livelihoods depend on sugarcane.