Parliament has pledged to secure lawyers to take legal actions against Continental Tobacco Services Uganda limited for defaulting tobacco farmers in Bugangaizi. This was announced by the Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga while receiving a petition from tobacco farmers at parliament over non-payment. Kadaga instructed the Member of Parliament for Bugangaizi, Kasirivu Atwook and the chairperson of Agriculture committee Matthias Kasamba to ensure that these farmers get a lawyer to peruse this case so they get their payment by the end of July this year.

Farmers under Kakumiro Tobacco Farmers’ Association through the Speaker of Kakumiro town council Barnabus Nsamba, claim Continental Tobacco Services Uganda limited did not pay them for one year for the supply of tobacco leaves and it owes them 5 billion shillings.

Nsamba said that the defaulting company only paid prominent farmers, leaving out the low income farmers suffering. The farmers told the Speaker that the agents of the Continental Tobacco also underpaid them through company agents withdrawing contract books from them. The group is bitter that their children have been discontinued from school due lack of funds, some have died without pay and others lost   their properties because of failure to service bank loans.

The affected tobacco farmers are over 3000.