The Friday evening road accident that claimed two people in Mubende District has reignited anger at government over the delayed road rehabilitation works on the Mityana-Fort Portal Road.
The crash that claimed business executive Kenneth Kaijuka, 45 and his driver Stephen, involved the Nissan Murano in which the family was driving and a Mercedes-Benz Actros heavy goods truck that was heading to the opposite direction at Kagavu, in Kalonga Sub-county, Mubende District. Stephen was also Kaijuka’s brother-in-law, elder brother to the now widow Agnes.
The four children in the vehicle survived, some with fractures. Eyewitnesses attributed the accident to speeding by the truck driver, considering that the poor road condition and the ongoing works.
Chris Kaijuka, Chairman of the Grain Council of Uganda and uncle to Kenneth, vowed to mobilise the people of Tooro and others along the road in a protest procession up to the Parliamentary building in Kampala, saying that this time, they would not be stopped as was with the previous two attempts.
Turning to Deputy Speaker of Parliament Thomas Tayebwa who was in the congregation, Kaijuka named other victims of accidents in the same area, adding that won’t wait for more people to die.
Quoting police sources, Kaijuka said the truck driver tried to dodge a pothole on the road, but that because of the high speed, lost control of the truck and drove to the right lane and the truck hit the saloon, dragging for about 50 metres, and mangling it.
He narrated how the children remained trapped in the wreckage under the truck for four hours, but praised the compassion of one Ivan, a resident in area, who managed to get his voice through the wreckage to communicate with the trapped children.
He was able to ask them for the phone contact of their mother after they told him that she had stayed back in Kampala, a move that finally made contact with the family possible. Four hours later, a careful rescue operation saved the children.
Deputy Speaker Tayebwa apologised for the delay of the works, saying that even as the government had been fighting with the contractor to ensure the road is done.
Works and Transport State Minister Fred Byamukama issued an eight-month ultimatum in June 2026 demanding that the Serbian contractor, Energo Projekt, finish the delayed reconstruction works by March 2027 or face contract termination. Tayebwa vowed that should there would be no further delays.
The 86-kilometer Mityana–Mubende section is part of the core strategic highway connecting Kampala to Fort Portal and western Uganda. The works were launched in 2021 with an original completion target of 2024, but the project has suffered several setbacks due to funding constraints and administrative hurdles, according to both the contractor and the ministry of works.
Tayebwa explained that apart from the problems of the contractor, the government also had its contribution to the delays especially regarding financing. He says that money for the completion of the 86-kilometre Mityana-Mubende stretch and upgrade of 14 kilometres of town roads in Mityana had been released to the contractor.
The Works Minister ordered the contractor to immediately grade and maintain the entire rough stretch to ease severe dust, potholes, and traffic stress for motorists while pushing for completion ahead of the strict 2027 deadline.
The rest of the road, that is the 89.3 kilometres of Mubende-Kyegegwa-Kyenjojo, is being worked on by the Ministry of Works and Transport inhouse road construction unit, and Tayebwa says is expected to last another 18 months.
Tayebwa also cautioned against reckless driving, citing that same accident and the recent one in which two NBS journalists were killed at Namulanda area along Entebbe Road.
He hoped that the ongoing motor vehicle inspections by the Ministry of Works and Trasport will go a long way to help reduce accidents, but also asked the police to intensify its enforcement role.
Kaijuka’s widow, Agnes, revealed to the mourners that it will be exactly 14 years on Tuesday (burial day) since the two got married at her parents’ home on August 18, 2014-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
