Things are not all that good for popular Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, Under Secretary Ssegawa Gyagenda, who doubles as the accounting officer, is battling silent money wars with comedians and other radio presenters.
We have learnt that employees who include comedians, presenters, Producers and others in different capacities and positions at Gyagenda’s defunct Bukoto based Digida FM radio are bickering with him demanding jointly and collectively close to shs200m.
The employees have so far sought the services of Kigenyi –Opira & Co Advocates in an effort to find a way of getting their monies.
It is alleged that the workers were shocked to report for work towards the end of March and found the premises fully shut without prior notice.
This left them devastated since no official confirmation was rendered to them following the station’s closure and their unfair dismissal.
“To our clients’ utter shock and dismay thereof, towards the end of March the year 2020 when they had reported for work, you inexcusably, illegally and in total breach and/or contravention of the laws regulating the employer-employee relationship locked them outside of their workplace without furnishing any viable and grounded reasons to them, you have up to date failed to honour their rights which are vividly expressed under various legislations of this land,” the notice read in parts.
It is alleged that the undersecretary sold off the station when most of the presenters had taken many months without payments.
Due to Ssegawa’s illicit and unjustifiable behaviour, damages and psychological torture caused to his workers he is being held liable for the unfair termination of their contracts and deliberate refusal to remit their statutory deductions to NSSF.
Therefore, workers have jointly instructed the lawyers to demand him to pay the salary arrears covering 10months of their service period at the time of termination which is estimated close to 200m.
In addition, he has been ordered to pay Shs35m as damages resulting from illegal withholding of his workers’ salaries and unfair termination of their contracts.
Over 30 workers were affected who served as Radio presenters, producers, DJs, programmers, security officers, cashiers, receptionists among other duties serving under different terms of employment.
