Bodaboda operators have thanked Speaker Rebecca Kadaga and Members of Parliament for advocating for their return to business in the Covid-19 situation.

The bodaboda operators say transporting passengers is their primary source of income which had been banned for the past four months.

The Bodaboda operators met the Speaker on Tuesday, 28 July 2020 and commended her for always campaigning for the growth and progress of their livelihoods.

“We met with you in June and requested you to lobby for us to get back on the road. We have come to say thank you for living up to your promise,” said Bosco Buziba, the chairperson of the Kiira Municipality Bodaboda Association.

Buziba said that some of the new regulations for their operations are hard and were also seeking the support of Parliament to ease on these.

Musa Mutebi, a member of the association cited the new directive by Kampala Capital City Council (KCCA) to establish a Bodaboda free zone that limits operators from accessing some parts of the city.

“The Kampala City centre is where we benefit the most in terms of transporting passengers but they have barred us from accessing these routes, which is affecting our business,” Mutebi said.

Speaker Kadaga commended the Bodaboda operators for their expression of gratitude and asked them to follow the current guidelines in place to enable their business progress efficiently.

“We shall look into the Bodaboda free zone and see how to address it. Bodabodas are used by most of the public and if they are restricted from accessing certain areas where there is no public transport, our people will be inconvenienced,” said Kadaga.

KCCA has now come out and granted the operators a one month grace period before the implementation of the free zone. This is to allow the authority to designate stages and also allow the operators to register at their areas of operation.