Residents of Buwunga in Bugiri district are decrying the rate at which boda-boda riders are being awfully murdered and their motorcycles lost to robbers.
The crime rate that results into several deaths of motorcyclists has amounted to over 15 lost lives in a period from May 2023 to January 2024. According to reports from the locals in the area, more than 20 victims have sustained critical head damages since December 2023 to February 2024. And in the same period, locals have reported loss of over 35 motorcycles to the Police.
The case of Buwunga motorcycle thefts and death rise due to the same is not something that is unique, however according to the locals the crime has become a time bomb that could result into a national security threat.
The locals of Buwunga that we spoke to prefer anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, however, they claim that this crime has become rampant partly because of what they termed as a not concerned police. The locals accuse the Police in the area of failure to cause prosecution of the suspects that they report to them.
In the most recent event, a mechanic who also deals in the selling of motorcycle spare parts in Buwunga identified as Joshia Sanyu, a 27-year-old born of Magoola village, Buwunga sub-county in Bugiri district and currently a resident of Busowa town council, has been pinned by the locals as being at the forefront of the murders and robbing of boda-boda riders.
The locals claim that they have on many occasions caused his arrest but somehow, he beats the system and gets out of the cells without being prosecuted.
Following recent crime events, Nexus Media established that Sanyu was arrested by security operatives and taken to one of the police stations in Bugiri on Saturday, February 17, 2024, at around 3pm. However, in a twist of events, when the police at that particular station where the suspect was held was contacted about the case on February 18, 2024, they denied having the suspect, claiming that they do not know about any boda boda murders and thefts in the area.
Following a tip from the locals in Buwanga, Nexus Media adventurously found out that Sanyu who has been identified as a suspected notorious facilitator of the boda boda thefts, was arrested after an incident where a suspect was arrested with a stolen motorcycle. On being interrogated, he claimed to have bought it from Sanyu. On arrival to the Police station on Saturday, February 17, 2024, Sanyu presented fabricated documentation for the exhibit motorcycle prompting the security to arrest him.
Sanyu is accused of having several criminal cases in relation to stolen motorcycles that are currently parked at Bugiri Central Police Station (CPS).
Sanyu who has been red coded by the locals in Buwunga is said to have two homes and garages in Busowa town council and Buwunga which they suspect he has been using for the criminal acts.
He is accused by the local community of switching number plates, chassis numbers and engine numbers of the stolen motorcycles in a period of an hour, and later selling them in Kenya with Kenyan number plates.
Locals in the area have vowed to reach out to the CID head offices to have this matter followed up to conclusion. However, information from security sources in Bugiri have revealed that the Criminal Investigative office of Bugiri district has already swang in action to put up the pieces in this puzzling public outcry.
It has been futile to pick a comment from the Bugiri CPS however, security sources indicate that they are yet to unearth the racket of boda boda crimes following continuous public outcry.
The Buwunga case is one of the many cases, as several have occurred in other parts of the country. In January 2024, police in Hoima arrested three suspects in connection with murdering by hacking on the head of Abraham Kiiza, a 32-year-old resident of Kibegenya village in Kyabigambire sub-county, Hoima district at around 10pm as he approached his compound from work, on a Bajaj motorcycle number UFN 877E, and left him in a pool of blood. The attackers however, abandoned the motorcycle on hearing the residents coming to rescue the victim.
According to Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU) position paper about integrating boda-boda into formal economy of October 30, 2023, the industry in Uganda is vast and diverse with over 1.5 million people involved in the business. But as the business continues to thrive, the boda-boda riders have encountered several challenges with the gruesome murder of the riders and robbery of their motorcycles topping the list.
