Mbarara City North MP Christopher Bakashaba has urged city leaders to expand electricity access and improve basic services before introducing additional taxes, as the city targets Shs12 billion in local revenue.
Mbarara City North MP Christopher Bakashaba has challenged Mbarara city authorities to improve basic service delivery, particularly electricity access, before imposing additional taxes on residents and businesses.
Bakashaba made the call on Tuesday during the Mbarara City Budget Conference at Adit Mall, where city leaders, technical officers and community representatives discussed revenue collection and development priorities for the coming financial period.
He acknowledged the council’s efforts to broaden its revenue base but said residents should see improvements in essential services, including electricity, roads and access to clean water, alongside increased tax demands.
“I am happy that the council is trying to increase the local revenue base by coming up with new taxes, but before you impose many taxes on our people, please provide services to our people, especially in those areas without electricity,” Bakashaba said.
The legislator argued that expanding local revenue through commercial rates and other levies was reasonable, but urged authorities to ensure that revenue collection went hand in hand with tangible improvements in communities.
He said residents would be more willing to meet their tax obligations if they could see the benefits through better infrastructure and more equitable access to public services.
During the conference, city officials outlined plans to strengthen local revenue collection to finance urban planning and infrastructure projects.
Community representatives, however, echoed calls for more equitable distribution of services across the city’s divisions.
Bakashaba pledged to advocate in Parliament for faster electrification of underserved rural and peri-urban areas in Mbarara City North.
He also urged city planners and local leaders to work with the Ministry of Energy to extend the electricity grid to areas that remain unconnected.
Mbarara City’s local revenue targets have risen from Shs5.5 billion in the 2021/2022 financial year to Shs10 billion in 2025/2026.
The target for the current 2026/2027 financial year stands at Shs12 billion, according to information provided in the conference report.
The conference ended with local leaders committing to review tax implementation strategies and consider ways to strengthen service delivery alongside revenue generation.