President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has directed that all those people whose mobile money tax deductions had been made on the basis of 1% be refunded.

In a statement on his blog, the President said the figure of 1% came up by mistake.

“Parliament, when it reconvenes, will be requested to correct it. The ones whose deductions had been made on the basis of 1% should have their money reimbursed,” the statement reads in part.

READ MORE: Mobile Money and social media taxes to be reviewed nextweek on Thursday

Museveni further says that Mobile money tax cannot be revoked since many people’s earnings are not known.

“Apart from salary earners and those who use banks, the earnings of many other Ugandans are not known. Mobile money transfers have brought to the surface the big volumes of money that are moving around the country,” Museveni’s statement notes.

He says that each day US$ 52m moves around in the form of mobile money. This is about US$ 19bn a year. “Much of this money is by big people; but, of course, some of it is by, economics-wise, small people.”

This reversal comes a few days after protests and demonstrations against the tax on the streets of Kampala.

The President, however, insisted that the tax on Social Media stays because according to him, Ugandans are sending dollars to countries abroad, and instead of putting foreign exchange controls, he would rather put a tax on the service.

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