Kampala. East African governments have renewed efforts to bring the betting industry under strict control amid claims of tax evasion and fears of a growing gambling culture and addition among the youth, who are mostly unemployed.
Kenya and Uganda have moved to vet industry players with threats of revocation of licences to tame the proliferation of betting, gaming and gambling outlets.
Despite imposing a punitive tax regimes, restricting the importation of gaming devices and impounding and burning gambling machines, the sector has continued to record growth.
Uganda levies a 35 per cent tax on betting, while in Kenya, the same was reduced to 15 per cent after lobbying by sector players.
While both countries have resorted to drastic measures to contain a sector that has largely become a social and economic menace, Tanzania enacted a strong regulatory framework through the Gaming Act, 2003.
In the 2017/18 financial year, Tanzania collected $36 million from gaming and betting.
But religious leaders recently lobbied President John Magufuli to ban betting altogether to control addiction among the youth.

Suspension
Just this week, Kenya announced that licences for all betting agencies stand suspended as from July 1, and that their renewal will be subject to proof that the companies are tax compliant.
President Museveni recently directed the Ministry of Finance to stop licencing sports betting, gaming and gambling companies due to the negative effects the industry is having on the youth.

Growing numbers 
A recent GeoPoll rapid survey carried out among youth between the ages of 17 and35 in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Ghana, Nigeria and South Africa show that millennials in sub-Saharan Africa spend $50 monthly on betting through their mobile phones.

KAMPALA. At 8am on Saturday, my phone rang. The caller was precise and to the point. She had a breaking story of national importance.
“I want you to break that story. You can take my word that no other journalist both here and outside Uganda has it, you are the only one I am telling and please don’t break my trust,” she said.
The anxiety and excitement that comes with breaking a story is one that sends the adrenaline surging; only one who has practised as a journalist can know.
What was the story? The source was not ready to share for now. She laughed and said, “It is a big one, I will call you later.” Up until the afternoon, every phone call that came through stirred immeasurable anxiety.
True to her word, she called in the afternoon, saying: “The story is that Gen Sejusa is coming back to Uganda tonight. I have done my part. Do the rest. He lands at 10pm.” The source, however, requested that the story is only broken after the general had landed. Anything short of that would be breach of trust.
As I briefed the news editor, I could see his excitement, albeit restrained. The idea was that Sunday Monitor would change its late edition after the general’s flight had landed.
“We shall be on standby so go to Entebbe and text us when you see him, and then we shall change the cover,” the editor said. As I struggled to fight the excitement of being the first to tweet and post on Facebook about the general’s unannounced return. I received information that there were changes in the flight arrangements. Gen Sejusa would land between midnight and 1am.
I tipped off a senior colleague and photojournalist, hopped onto a company car and cruised to Entebbe, having our dinner at Lubowa. We kept resisting the urge to inform colleagues from other media houses and praying this was no hoax. This was a high-level operation.
By 2am, we were at the airport’s arrivals lounge. There was no security deployment. Gen Sejusa’s sister, whose presence we had learnt about, kept pacing about and making phone calls. We also saw renowned human rights lawyer Ladislaus Rwakafuzi making endless calls.
We approached Mr Rwakafuzi, who told us Gen Sejusa was his client. We also learnt that the Chief of Defence Forces, Gen Katumba Wamala, was at the airport en route to Nairobi while the Police Director for Operations, Mr Andrew Felix Kawesi, was also around “positioned strategically”. Meanwhile, the presidential convoy had bypassed us at Zana on the Entebbe highway, at about 11pm headed to Kampala.
As we waited for the general’s arrival, I could not help but wonder. “Would he be arrested? Would it be smooth sailing for him? Will he speak to us? What if he does not turn up anyway?”
These were the questions I battled with when at 3.13am, information came that Gen Sejusa had landed and was at the VIP lounge. We could see Mr Rwakafuzi and Brig Ronnie Balya, the head of internal intelligence, at a distance. They were watching as Gen Sejusa’s sister hugged him.
My colleague Isaac Imaka and I were the first to tweet about what we were seeing. I also made the announcement on my Facebook and Daily Monitor walls.
We realised we would not be allowed near him. We called Mr Rwakafuzi asking if he could link us up. The general first accepted before declining and instead dictating a brief message through Mr Rwakafuzi, asking that we relay it on KFM, our sister radio station. It was a request we could not honour at the odd hour of 3am.
Even if we had not gotten a detailed interview, we knew we could wake up with a scoop of a photo. As our photojournalist, Faiswal Kasirye, positioned himself strategically at the VIP Parking yard, ready to take a shot of Gen Sejusa boarding the waiting car, something happened. In a split second, the general was whisked away—leaving Kasirye helpless. He had missed the shot of a lifetime!
Later, Mr Rwakafuzi would announce that the sleek jeep was taking Gen Sejusa to Sembabule. The clandestine mission was over. Our photojournalist was dejected but we encouraged him—saying we could still find solace in the fact that we had broken the news first. We had not braved the cold Entebbe in vain.

politicians react to gen sejusa’s return

‘He did nothing wrong, he just wants to express his opinion and there is nothing wrong with that. I like him. Everyone wants to live home. Those making noise on social media speculating that he could have fooled them are the ones with problems because everyone is free to speak their mind,’
Brig Kasirye Ggwanga, presidential adviser on security in Buganda

‘I woke up to the stunning news and it was like a dream. If it was April 1, I would have thought it was a fools’ day prank. His return is as dramatic as his exit was. It is too early to judge this enterprising development, so many things do not add up. Is he on amnesty? It is hard to tell what is happening,”
Erias Lukwago, kampala lord mayor

“I am very happy that he has returned to Uganda.We should live here and solve our issues in Uganda, especially those of us who went to exile once. We should not put other Ugandans in a situation where they have to go to exil,”
(Rtd) Col Amanya Mushega,
FDC Western region Vice president

Nairobi- Kenya president Uhuru Kenyatta convened three crucial meetings last week during which it became apparent that Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph Ole Lenku and police chief David Kimaiyo could no longer remain in office, it has emerged.

The president has lately come under immense pressure over the failure by his security organs to tame banditry and terrorist attacks that have rocked the country.

Last Wednesday morning, president Kenyatta convened a meeting of the National Security Council (NSC) to discuss the reasons why security agencies had failed to detect and pre-empt the attacks, top government sources said Tuesday.

It is understood that the president and his deputy, Mr William Ruto, were furious that despite the government investing billions in equipping the police and increasing their numbers, cases of fatal attacks on Kenyans were on the increase.

Others who attended this meeting were outgoing Interior CS Mr Lenku, the just retired Inspector-General of Police, Mr Kimaiyo, Chief of Kenya Defence Forces Gen Julius Karangi, Interior Affairs Principal Secretary Monica Juma, Deputy Inspector Generals of Police Grace Kaindi, Samwel Arachi, National Intelligence Services director Philip Kamweru and CID director Ndegwa Muhoro.

Sources said Mr Lenku, Mr Kimaiyo, Gen Karangi and Maj Gen Kamweru were given opportunities to explain their achievements in preventing the attacks, where they had failed and reasons for the failure.

The four were also required to give suggestions on how they planned to improve so as to stop the killings, either by bandits or terrorists.
Apart from the challenges brought about by the Constitution, sources close to the meetings told the Nation that it became clear Mr Lenku and Mr Kimaiyo had also failed to collaborate in fighting crime.

“Questions were raised regarding their abilities to lead the dockets they held,” sources said.

Last Thursday at 6.30am, President Kenyatta and his deputy held another meeting at State House with Mr Lenku and Mr Kimaiyo where the two were asked to give suggestions on how they planned to improve their performances.
They were also asked if they would opt to quit their positions in the face of the difficulties they faced.

At the end of this meeting, it became clear to the president and his deputy that the two men tasked with the duty of keeping Kenyans safe and secure were not up to the task. It is understood the Jubilee leadership was convinced that Mr Lenku and Mr Kimaiyo had to go.

Around noon, President Kenyatta and his deputy held a Cabinet meeting where among other issues, the matter of insecurity and killing of Kenyans was broadly discussed. Even a brief from the Presidential Strategic Communications Unit never touched on insecurity.

This was after it was agreed that the security organs engage teams of the Senate and the National Assembly to amend any laws that make it difficult for them to be effective in their work.

In his speech on Tuesday, President Kenyatta confirmed: “In light of this, I directed my government’s security actors to engage with the members of the relevant committees of the legislature last week with a view to rectify administrative and legal hurdles that limit our ability to deal with the very real and existential threat that we face.”

Tuesday’s killing of 36 quarry workers in Mandera prompted immediate action from the president who chaired a special Cabinet meeting in the morning and which explains the sudden resignation of Mr Kimaiyo and the replacement of Mr Lenku with Kajiado Central MP Joseph Nkaissery.

Source: Daily Monitor