President Yoweri Museveni and NRM MPs failed to reach an agreement about the merger of three key government agencies that include the Uganda national Roads Authority, (UNRA) and Uganda Coffee Development Authority and have defered the decision to a future date to allow more consulations .
This after President Museveni insisted that UNRA should be dissolved and its services taken over by the Ministry of Works and Transport under a department . Museveni told the MPs that UNRA was a financial burden .
Works Minister Gen. Katumba Wamala has argued that by taking over UNRA services ,government would save UGX 39 billion monthly in wages.
Impeccable sources told this publication that Museveni told MPs that UNRA was employing many engineers who are not effective in their work and as a results 3rd parties are brought in to compliment their work adding to more costs .
This decision came after Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja requested that the UNRA debate be deferred along with other pending agency mergers.
Museveni said that the UNRA merger was not negotiable and would proceed as planned. this after the MPs in a palriamnet sitting on April 23, refused to pass the UNRA (Repeal) Bill, 2024 arguing that the agency was one of the best performing and had added 3,686 km of new paved roads over the past 15 years .
The MPs noted that by converting UNRA into a department at the Ministry of Works will lead new challenges including delays and bureaucracies in implementation of road construction projects.
