Business owners are protesting unfair tax, trade policies

Business operators under various traders’ associations are striking over what they term as unfair tax regime in the country, increased rental charges and other unfair trade policies. The traders who held a similar strike in August this year. They called off a two-day strike after a meeting with Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja, who pledged to address their concerns through Cabinet and other government agencies.The traders’ key grievances, include the controversial weight tax system on textiles, delays in container clearance, inflated customs valuations, the mandatory Electronic Fiscal Receipting and Invoicing System, and the growing participation of foreign nationals in retail trade. They now demand that government should immediately halt taxation per kilo of garment, eviction vendors from streets and entrances to shopping arcades among other underlying issues. They have also called on their leaders to stop politicking during their pain.