Protestor gets mowed down by government employee in pickup. Uganda, 27 February 2024

Police in Kagadi Tuesday morning arrested the driver of a speeding government vehicle that February 26 crushed and killed 25-year-old demonstrator Tuhaise Magezi in the district's Muhorro Town Council.

Albertine region police spokesperson Julius Hakiiza confirmed the development and identified the driver as 38-year-old Steven Tibihikira.

Hakiiza also said the “ill-fated vehicle which belonged to the area local government has also been impounded.”

On Tuesday, police also said they had arrested 12 people accused of leading a demonstration over government's failure to tarmac roads.

"We urge the public to refrain from politicizing the issue and falsely accusing the district chairman. It is important to note that the driver is a Kagadi District staff member, simply doing the job he is employed for," Hakiiza told journalists on Tuesday.

Police clarified that the vehicle involved in the road crash was attached to the Kagadi District Health Office but not the district chairman Yosia Ndibwami, who was occupant in the car at the time of the road crash.

By the end of Tuesday, police were still investigating circumstances surrounding the incident which happened along the Muhorro-Ndaiga Road.

"The demonstration was illegal because the police were not informed about it, people should not matters into their own hands, we have leaders where they can channel their concerns,” police observed.

Police say the driver faces charges related to causing death and will be presented in court. Detained demonstrators face charges of holding an illegal assembly.

Meanwhile, Muhorro Town Council road user and chairperson of the area boda-boda association, Joseph Akugizibwe told Monitor that the demonstration was born out of frustration with the road's poor state.

“Government's failed promise to tarmac the road, —a commitment that had gone unfulfilled for four years, is what caused this,” according to Akugizibwe.

Magezi Akugizibwe, the elder brother of the deceased, expressed disappointment, placing blame on their leaders “for not addressing the community's concerns and resorting to tragic measures instead of honoring their demands.”

https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/national/govt-driver-arrested-over-knocking-kagadi-protestor-dead-4538916