Apac, Uganda: Kwania District LCV Chairperson Geoffrey Alex Ogwal Adyebo, backed by 17 political leaders drawn from UPC, FDC and independent ranks, has issued a dramatic 2031 ultimatum to President Yoweri Museveni, unveiling more than 10 urgent demands they described as “Lango’s non-negotiable development charter.”
The declaration was made during a tense, high-stakes meeting at Mayov Hotel in Apac Town, where leaders, typically divided by party lines, presented an unusually unified voice on what they termed decades of unmet pledges to the Lango Sub-region.
Ogwal Adyebo told hundreds gathered in the hotel hall that Lango’s economic stagnation has reached an intolerable point, especially due to the government’s failure to upgrade key transport routes.
“These roads are not luxuries. They are lifelines. Lango cannot continue being the region of unfulfilled pledges,” he said.
The leaders listed five priority roads they want tarmacked immediately, which include Ngai–Gulu City Road, Lira – Apala – Abim Road, Dokolo – Amolatar Road, Dokolo – Alebtong Road and Dokolo – Kwania – Kole Road
Former UPC district vice chairperson Mzee Opur DE-Apac was blunt in his address: “For years we have heard: ‘We shall tarmac, we shall plan, we shall start’. Today we say, start now or stop pretending.”
Beyond roads, the delegation demanded the creation of Erute District and Aber District, saying the region’s population size, service needs and distance from existing administrative centres justify new units.
“Every election cycle, the promise of new districts appears and then fades. We are done with political fog,” Ogwal Adyebo said.
One of the meeting’s loudest applauses came when leaders renewed the long-standing plea for the government to compensate Lango households with five head of cattle each, citing losses incurred through insurgencies and cattle rustling stretching back decades.
“Our grandparents died waiting for compensation. Our parents grew up waiting. We refuse to let the third generation wait again,” a youth representative said. “Compensation is not a favour—it is justice.”
Observers were struck by the rare political unity on display. Rivals who normally sit on opposite sides of the political aisle shared a single message and a single platform.
Mr Joseph Ocen Ecil, FDC’s candidate for Atik Division, said: “Today, we speak not as parties but as Lango. Development knows no colour—only need.”
An NRM leader in attendance reinforced the sentiment: “Even those in government are frustrated. We want the President to hear a collective voice, not scattered whispers.”
Closing the meeting, Ogwal Adyebo declared that Lango has begun a formal countdown to 2031, the year by which leaders expect the full delivery of their demands. “Your Excellency, we have drawn the line. Lango has been patient for decades. The countdown to 2031 begins today, and we shall keep reminding you.”
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