The Opposition Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) wants the government through her line agency Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited UEDCL to subsidize purposely to make it affordable to every citizen of Uganda. 

This comes after the transitioning of national electricity distribution from UMEME Limited to Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL).

Addressing journalists at the party head offices in Kampala on 2^nd April 2025, the party spokesperson Sharon Oyat Arach said it’s proven that it was wrong for the NRA/M to adopt a private economic model where it sold off public enterprises in anticipation of better services to solve Uganda’s socio-economic challenges which was wrong. 

Sharon said that the takeover of UMEME by UEDCL is the latest among the many government entities whose services must be entirely in the hand of the government that is in position to understand public need unlike a private investor whose interest is on profits. She says with the taking over of UMEME, strict supervision and capitalization of UEDCL must be prioritized for effective service delivery in as far as power/ electricity connections for both rural and urban areas is concerned. 

UEDCL took mandate of managing the distribution of power in Uganda from UMEME with effect from 1^st April after 20 years of operation by UMEME Limited as a largest private entity power distributer in Uganda, distributing about 97 percent of all electricity used in the country since 2005.

She further supported the government to reclaim more agencies, institutions, and properties from the private sector institutions so that Ugandans would be in position to hold them accountable. 

By Charles Katabalwa

2^nd April 2025

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