By Juungu Archelaus
A few days ago, Joe Walker Foundation CEO Joseph Beyanga, accompanied by Traffic Police spokesperson SP Michael Kananura and other road safety activists, officially launched the 30km Remembrance Relay Walk in memory of road crash victims.
The prominent activist, who has spearheaded tremendous initiatives for the safety of road users, is rallying the public for yet another event on November 14, 2026, under the theme, “Safe roads save lives.”
Given our current behaviour on the roads, this exact move should be championed by every leader, motorist, media house and police officer. Unsafe roads have claimed lives across all walks of life, from civil servants and gallant soldiers to businesspeople and schoolchildren. This reality alone calls for everyone to come on board and participate fully. To our leaders: these unsafe roads are deteriorating in your presence, and victims are suffering devastating crashes under your watch.
However, it can certainly feel like things are calming down when there hasn’t been a massive, multi-fatality highway tragedy dominating the front pages or news broadcasts. This perception does not reflect an actual drop in crashes. Instead, it is driven by two factors: the news cycle effect and fatigue and normalisation.
The news cycle effect: Media houses typically focus heavily on mass-casualty incidents, such as a major bus collision or a school bus crash.
Fatigue and normalisation: Because road crashes are treated as a chronic, ongoing crisis in Uganda, the media often suffers from “accident fatigue”. Unless a crash involves a high-profile public figure, a prominent journalist or an unusually high death toll, it is viewed as routine traffic log data rather than breaking news.
Fortunately, the Traffic Police are actively enforcing their ongoing safety operations. Yet, the silent, daily baseline of crashes continues even when the cameras are looking elsewhere.
Finally, to our leaders and representatives: supporting initiatives like this walk is far greater than making funeral contributions for road crash victims. These are your people, and they are dying on your watch.
If you would like your article/opinion to be published on Uganda’s most authoritative news platform, send your submission on: [email protected]. You can also follow DailyExpress on WhatsApp and on Twitter (X) for realtime updates.
