“The Uganda Wildlife Authority-UWA will continue charging vehicles transiting through Murchison Falls National Park.” Martin Mugarra Bahinduka the State Minister for Wildlife and Antiquities.
At Uganda Media Centre on Tuesday, the state minister speaks that contrary to claims that it is only Murchison National Park that charges travellers who transit through it. He said the Kichumbanyobo Paraa Tangi – Pakwach bridge road was constructed strictly as a tourism road and not for general public use.
Mugarra said that the tarmacking of this road does not justify the change of its status as a park tourism road, indeed in the plans for UNRA to upgrade it to bitumen, the major justification was to support tourism inside the park. National Park was constructed for administrative and tourism use and has been so.
The minister’s statement followed the contestation by some of the MPs representing constituencies in northern Uganda. The MPs led by Gilbert Olanya of Kilak county argued that it is unfair to charge travellers to northern Uganda yet people in western Uganda who transit through Lake Mburo National Park and Queen Elizabeth National Park are not charged.
The minister said that the road through Murchison Falls National Park was developed for administrative and tourism purposes. Travellers to West Nile and Northern Uganda have an alternative route, through Kiryandongo via the Karuma bridge to either Pakwach or Gulu, at no costs despite traversing through Murchison Falls National Park too. This is a fact that those misinforming the public about free access through other parks in Uganda like to ignore.
Over a week ago UNRA closed Karuma bridge for three months to enable its refurbishment after cracks were observed. Since then, travellers to northern Uganda have been directed to use alternative routes.
They also have to balance between this and wildlife conservation although they acknowledge the need for people to transit through the park unimpeded.
Mugarra said that UWA has provided an alternative route through the park at free cost using the Bugungu gate. This route is about an extra 30 km to Kampala if one travels through Hoima. Given the travel through Kichumbanyobo gate is an additional 50 km in the park and at the speed limit of 40 km per hour, it will take the same time, if not shorter, to pass through the Bugungu gate and with numerous advantages to both people and wildlife.
