By Alex Balimwikungu
Veteran singer and co-founding director of the Golden Production Band Mesach Semakula has quit the band.
In 2014, Semakula and fellow musicians Ronald Mayinja, Musa Kavuma (KT), Fred Sseruga, Catherine Kusasira and others left Eagles Production to start the Golden Production Band. This was other Eagles Production members like Geoffrey Lutaaya quit to start “The New Eagles” band.
Word at the time was that they split over financial disagreements.
Documents seen by The Kampala Sun show that the newly formed Golden Productions Uganda Limited had Semakula (19% shares), Mayinja (19%), Kavuma (10%), Sserugga(10%), Kusasira (8%), Stecia Mayanja(8%), Doreen Mutiibwa (8%) and Maureen Nantume with 8% as shareholders in the company.
Also, the company appointed Semakula, Mayinja, Sserugga and Kavuma as directors.
However, this week, through his lawyers of Lukwago and Company Advocates, Semakula informed his fellow directors and shareholders of his intention to quit the band.
“I am experiencing health-related complications which cannot make me perfectly execute my obligations and duties to the company, which involve busy assignments like routine practicing, routine travelling, staging and participating in music performances in different parts of the country,” Semakula said.
In 2019, one of the directors, Mayinja, also announced he was quitting the band over unknown reasons.
“This is to inform the directors of Golden Band that I, Ronald Mayinja, wish to exit the band due to reasons worth not mentioning here. To my fans, it’s my honour to thank you for your continued support and love that has made my music career a success. I do inform you that I am still in the music industry and offering you the best given your lovely support,” he said in his 2019 resignation.
However, after one week, Mayinja returned to the band.
In the letter seen by The Kampala Sun, Mesach alludes to financial woes. For instance, he states that the band’s music equipment, which are the only assets it has, had been confiscated by the landlord over sh12m rent arrears.
The singer said he had personally coughed up the sh12m and the equipment released to him by the landlord.
“While the company owes me a sum of sh12m, that I singlehandedly paid for as rent arrears for the release of musical instruments, I hereby forfeit the said debt and by this instrument, I am willing to surrender the musical instruments to the continuing directors and shareholders of Golden Productions Uganda Limited who are at liberty to pick and collect them on a day and date they may deem fit,” Ssemakula said in the resignation letter.
