‘Accidents happen’ - NUP speaks out on Masaka crash

The crash happened on Friday, May 31, 2024, along the Kampala-Masaka Highway near St. Lawrence College, and involved two motor vehicles and four motorcycles.

Leader of Opposition in Parliament Hon Joel Ssenyonyi revealed that they had deployed teams to the scene to establish the cause of the accident.

“We sympathise with the families of the victims and those injured. We are in touch with all of them and are trying to find ways to support them,” he said.

Ssenyoyi says Police told them that the person who caused the accident was trying to join the NUP convoy and that that person fled from the scene.

Police in a statement attributed the cause of the accident to the "recklessness of the drivers and riders who were driving at excessive speeds without regard to other road users."

In the wake of the tragedy, the Police suspended all of NUP’s upcoming consultative activities.

However, according to Ssenyonyi, this decision was uncalled for because the accident was not planned by the NUP.

“Accidents happen all the time,” he said.

“Museveni’s convoy causes accidents all the time. The Vice President too knocked female rugby players. Have these convoys been stopped from using roads?”

“Even in sports tournaments we have seen road accidents taking place, but the tournaments don't get cancelled. When we saw the police cancelling our meetings, we did not understand it.”

Instead of politicising the accident, Ssenyonyi says the Police should focus on investigating the accident and finding ways of preventing others in the future.

The leading opposition party insists that it will carry on with its activities as planned.