Project Affected Persons (PAPs), local residents, and key stakeholders are urging the government to fulfill President Yoweri Museveni’s longstanding pledge to construct the Ambercourt-Mbulamuti-Kamuli-Buyende road.
The road, which serves as a vital agriculture produce transport route, has remained in a deplorable state despite repeated assurances from top leadership.
Stakeholders argue that the poor road conditions continue to hamper agricultural trade, increase transport costs, and limit access to essential services such as healthcare and education.
“For three decades, I have campaigned and pushed for construction of this road from Jinja Amber Court through Mbulamuti to Bukungu. What Busoga needs now is road connectivity to access markets,” said Ms. Rebecca Kadaga, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of East Africa Community Affairs.
However, local leaders and residents are increasingly frustrated over the delay of the road that has cut them off in accessing markets for their produce. “We love, vote, and support the NRM here, but it seems the presidential pledges have shifted from promises to lies used as bait to keep us hoping, only to be resurrected during campaign season,” said Mr. Michael Kanaku, Chairperson Buyende District.
Mr. Chris Mugweri, a former NRM cadre turned to National Unity Platform (NUP) supporter and current Mbulamuti District Councilor, echoed similar sentiments.
“There seems to be an orchestrated corruption syndicate where funds for these projects are released at the source but vanish before implementation. These perennial unfulfilled pledges are lies and a betrayal of public trust,” he said.
During a recent community engagement, PAPs emphasized the urgent need for government intervention, citing delays in compensation and lack of transparency in the road project’s implementation timeline. The Ambercourt-Buyende road remains a key test of government responsiveness and commitment to infrastructure development in rural Uganda.
Mr. Richard Gulume, Jinja Resident City Commissioner, confirmed that the road has been on the agenda of the government and recently a consultant was on ground to assess the road project as planned.
“We have continued to develop the land and property and are demanding more money. The government is committed, and efforts are underway for commencement of the project,” he said.
PAPs through their representative in Jinja, Dr. Sam Olam, said their land titles were taken by the Uganda National Road Authority for compensation verification purposes three years ago, and they have received no feedback. Dr. Olam said the PAPs demand government pronouncement as they have experienced significant losses due to the government’s actions.
The Ministry of Works and Transport has assured PAPs that all land titles are safe and will be returned to owners promptly once the required right of way is established and residue titles are prepared.
“Our team is actively on ground conducting data collection to support valuation and the eventual compensation of the project affected persons,” said Mr. Allan Ssempebwa, Senior Communication Officer of the Ministry of Works and Transport.
The Monitor has learned that the government is set to borrow money from Citibank Bank to finance and build the Jinja-Mbulamuti-Kamuli-Buyende Road.