Traffic fees: Daylight robbery – The Observer

A number of top officials involved in the set-up of the controversial Electronic Penalty System (EPS) penalty scheme have intimated to The Observer that the extremely high road penalties for motorists are partly motivated by government’s desire to fast-track the payment of the contractor’s investment.

The system was recently set up by Russian company Joint Stock Company Global Security. It is monitored and managed by the contractor together with the ministries of Security, Works and Transport as well as that of Internal Affairs through the police.

In 2023, government entered into a 10-year contract with the Russian company to install the digital monitoring systems in vehicles across the country using the Intelligent Transport Management System (ITMS). The deal, which had been scheduled to start on October 31, 2023, also involved the rolling out of new digital number plates able to track every car countrywide.

Security minister Jim Muhwezi, the architect of the deal, assured the public that the number plate system would be designed to monitor all motor vehicles, motorcycles and other vessels within Uganda through an electronically-activated device. The business model, projected to generate $900m [Shs 3.2 trillion] in 10 years, is structured in a way that the contractor invests $257m [Shs 926 billion] into the technology so that by the expiration of the 10 years, they would have recouped $390m [Shs 1.4 trillion].

However, logistical and financial delays, mostly blamed on the contractor, meant that the project could not start on time. So, rolling out of the new number plates only kicked off on January 6, 2025. There were further delays to set up the ITMS, which officially started operations only a few weeks ago.

All this means that the contract is already two years behind schedule and according to insiders, in a bid to catch up with the financial projections, it was agreed by top-level technocrats from the different ministries to come up with prohibitively high EPS penalties for traffic violations.

Some of the offences include speed violation, overstepping stop line/markings, making a turn not under the sign and jumping the red light.

MAYHEM

Last week, issuance of EPS tickets was rolled into action, sparking outrage amongst Ugandans on social media, especially about what they termed as exorbitant penalties. Issues have also been raised about the absence of signages to warn motorists about speed limits, with many taking to social media to criticize the EPS.

Meanwhile, Joel Ssenyonyi, the leader of opposition in parliament, yesterday wrote to Gen Katumba Wamala, the minister of Works and Transport to express ‘public concerns over the EPS.’

“While the intention behind the EPS may have been rooted in promoting road safety and order, its current execution has raised widespread alarm among motorists and other road users. I have personally received numerous complaints pointing to the system’s relentless and, in many cases, excessive issuance of traffic fines without clear and accessible justification. In particular, drivers have described the EPS as punitive and exploitative, rather than corrective or educational,” says part of his statement.

Among the issues Ssenyonyi raises is lack of public awareness and training, confusing and inconsistent speed limits, security risks (especially on the Northern bypass] due to enforced low speeds and the excessive penalties and restrictions. He also cites technical and procedural shortcomings as well as the traffic-lights- versus-traffic-police conundrum.

For one, former police spokesperson Asan Kasingye, vented his frustrations on X.

“I will disobey any traffic officer who signals me to drive or stop at traffic lights junctions unless the traffic lights aren’t working. If I am told to drive on when red, I will disobey. If I am told to stop when green, I will disobey,” he noted.

When The Observer reached out to a top-level official in the Works ministry, he noted that whereas the goal [of the high EPS penalties] is to send a punitive message to bad road users, they [ministry] are already behind schedule to meet the terms of the contract with the Russian firm.

“It was agreed in order to catch up with the projected revenues of the deal, there was need to raise the EPS fines high. Remember, we have to disburse a payment to the contractor every three months,” said the source.

“What many people in the public forget is that is as much as the EPS system aims to foster road safety, it is also a business model for government and in business, there are targets and deadlines to beat.”

He refused to divulge details about the quarterly payments. However, a senior traffic police official admitted that continued public uproar about EPS may prompt the ministry to revise the penalties.

“We are still monitoring the situation for assessment and we will inform the public in due course.” Meanwhile, a senior official from the Internal Affairs ministry who preferred anonymity, questions the EPS penalties as shady.

“I was surprised that whereas I participated in the set-up of the ITMS and EPS system, I and many of my colleagues were never consulted on the issue of EPS penalties. The public has also not be readied for the system,” said the source.

“There are also quite many alterations and deviations by the contractor that need to be revised. Only a naïve person can believe that those guys [Joint Stock Company Global Security] invested that money [$275m] for the system.”

Some of those deviations, according to sources, is the absence of the electronically- activated device system on new number plates to track all vehicles in the country. Efforts to reach out to Muhwezi were futile as calls to his known numbers went unanswered.

CONTEXT

It remains to be seen how the situation will evolve going forward but it is baffling that government could project a Shs 3.2 trillion in traffic fines and set about to achieve it at all costs.

This brings into question whether the real motive is road safety or revenue generation. To break down the project revenue, it means government targets to collect Shs 8.7bn daily, Shs 61bn weekly, Shs 266bn per month and Shs 800 billion quarterly.

Given that the Russian firm gets 43 per cent of the revenue, it means government is in a race against time to raise at least Shs 344 billion within the next three months.

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