The Tooro Kingdom Prime Minister has issued a statement pushing back against verbal government assurances over the troubled Kampala–Mubende–Fort Portal highway, insisting that visible construction, not apologies, is the only way to prevent further deaths after a recent crash claimed two lives.
Rt. Hon. Calvin Armstrong Rwomiire Akiiki's statement followed Deputy Speaker Rt. Hon. Thomas Tayebwa's public apology at the funeral of Kenneth Kaijuka Amooti, who died when a trailer container overturned onto his vehicle.
Tayebwa acknowledged that reckless driving and poor road conditions contributed to the tragedy, and commended emergency personnel who rescued four surviving children from the wreckage. "As government, we have listened to these concerns, particularly those raised by the people of Tooro," the Deputy Speaker stated. "We ask for forgiveness for the delays. We acknowledge that government made mistakes that contributed to the prolonged completion of the project. The road was originally expected to be completed in 2024, but it faced several challenges and failures."
While Tayebwa confirmed that President Yoweri Museveni and the Ministry of Works and Transport have issued a strict final deadline of April 2027 to contractor Energoprojekt, Rwomiire stressed in his statement that set timelines must be matched by immediate machinery and workforce deployment on the ground.
The Premier acknowledged the Deputy Speaker's apology and honest recognition of the state's shortcomings, but emphasized that local communities need active execution rather than verbal assurances to feel safe.
"Our people have heard deadlines before. We acknowledge the assurance that April 2027 is the final deadline, but another deadline alone will not reassure them," Rwomiire said in the statement. "They need to see work happening. They need accountability. They need urgency."
The Kampala–Mubende–Fort Portal corridor is a strategic commercial route connecting central Uganda to the western region, carrying heavy traffic critical to agriculture, trade, and the tourism industry centered around Fort Portal.
To ensure the route meets national safety standards, the Prime Minister of Tooro outlined several immediate priority actions in his statement: rapid technical repairs on identified high-risk zones, immediate full-scale deployment of machinery and staff by the contracted engineering firms, and strict continuous supervision by national road authorities to guarantee no further extensions beyond the 2027 target.
Reaffirming the institution's commitment to constructive civic engagement, Rwomiire noted in the statement that Tooro Kingdom remains ready to partner with government agencies and transport planners to ensure the vital highway is restored to a safe, modern transit corridor for all Ugandans.
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