Addressing the nation on Tuesday at the State Lodge in Nakasero, President Museveni said he is puzzled with the issue of hiked prices for a number of commodities especially those used at home and those used to prevent the spread of the virus like masks and sanitizers.
Describing such traders as crooks, Mr Museveni said he would deploy his intelligence teams to trace merchants who have hiked commodity prices.
“I hear there are crooks hiking the prices of food. I will send my spies to the market and if I find anybody hiking the prices, I will cancel their licences,” he said.
Mr Museveni said: “Nothing has changed for you to overcharge. We produce food here. If you hike the prices of food, I may have to mobilise NRM cadres to go to villages and bring food here; and they leave these crooks of Kampala,” he said.
Since last week, prices for key necessities at home like food have more than doubled as members of the public panic to buy and stock at home in preparation for a possible lockdown as the deadly coronavirus pandemic persists.
Museveni however, warned that government will be forced to intervene by cancelling licences for traders hiking prices for food and other items.
“I want to warn those people that I will send spies and if I find anybody hiking prices of food I will cancel his licence. You are crooks. What has happened to make the prices go up? What has changed to make things expensive,” Museveni wondered.
Museveni described these traders as crooks whom he warned against taking advantage of the current situation to hike prices to disadvantaged members of the public.
“For anybody who is overcharging, we shall cancel their licence. We shall send people to pretend as if they are buying to get you. We shall cancel your licence never to return it.”
“I can organize NRM cadres from villages to bring food to towns because we have ever done it. We can organize a parallel chain to sell food at lower prices.”
