Poor Road Infrastructure, Cattle Compensation Dominate Lango Issues
By Simon Eluk
Cattle compensation, poor road infrastructure, poor performance in school and teachers’ welfare are among the most pressing concerns dominating public opinion in the Lango sub-region.
Residents have called on the government to prioritize the upgrade of several critical roads, including Lira-Otuke-Abim, Namasale-Dokolo-Alebtong, Aboke-Iceme-Bobi, and Lira-Aloi-Otukeroutes.
These roads—particularly Lira-Otuke and the Namasale road in Amolatar—have become accident hotspots, disrupting transport, trade, and the movement of agricultural produce.
“Many of these roads, especially Lira-Otuke, are now flooded in parts and filled with large potholes, making travel difficult and dangerous for us,” said Christopher Ogwang, LC1 chairperson of Alango village in Otuke District.
He noted that residents are frustrated, especially since the same road leads to Baralegi State Lodge in Okwang but remains in a poor state, hampering transportation and local business.
Alfred Opoka, a resident of Obim in Alebtong, urged the President to focus more attention on road improvement, stressing the high number of road accidents.
“More than five people get into accidents every day on this road. The government should offer a permanent solution to the problem,” Opoka said.
During a recent campaign rally in the Lango sub-region, President Museveni pledged that the government would tarmac the major roads. He also warned district leaders against mismanaging the UGX 1.3 billion allocated for road rehabilitation.
“That money is strictly meant for the rehabilitation of roads within the district. Don’t scatter it, because it may not be enough,” Museveni said while addressing residents in Kwania District.
In addition to infrastructure concerns, residents also raised issues regarding the just concludedteachers’ strike and delayed cattle compensation, both of which they say require urgent government intervention.
“There is no proper learning going on as I speak because teachers are disappointed because low salary. I am advising the President to reconsider his decision and enhance their salaries,” said Dicken Okello, LC1 of Amonmaka Village.
He also emphasized the importance of addressing the long-standing issue of livestock compensation, which many residents see as a matter of justice and survival.
While addressing a campaign rally at Dokolo Technical School in Dokolo District recently, Museveni emphasized that his new plan aims to ensure that each household receives at least five cattle, though the compensation will be done in phases.
“I told your leaders, why don’t we ensure that every household gets five cows? I got a report from Teso that they support me, and Lango is also supporting, when I met them,” Museveni said.
He acknowledged past failures in the compensation process and directed his team to implement a phased approach to ensure fairness and transparency.
“It will not be in one year, but in phases — we shall be there,” the President added.
The cattle compensation program has long been a contentious issue in Lango and Teso, with both communities and local leaders criticizing the process for benefiting only 169,000 claimants — those who dragged the government to court in 2014 and won yet Lango has a population of 2.5million people.
Months ago while meeting Lango leaders President Museveni proposed a select committee to resolve cattle compensation in Lango that had dragged on for decades.
The compensation program, officially launched in March 2022 with a budget of UGX 200 billion, was meant to compensate victims in Acholi, Lango, and Teso whose livestock and property were destroyed during past insurgencies and conflicts.
“So far, 169 billion shillings has been spent. But we still need 506 billion shillings for verified claims and another 275 billion shillings for unverified ones – close to 800 billion shillings in total,” Museveni told the leaders during the meeting.
