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The walls are finally closing in on officials linked to one of Uganda’s biggest and most expensive road projects after the Ministry of Works and Transport suspended two senior engineers over allegations of embezzlement and manipulation of the SHS1.7 trillion Busega-Mpigi Expressway project.In a dramatic move seen as the first major casualty of President Yoweri Museveni’s crackdown on corruption in public infrastructure, the Ministry has suspended Kiyaga Edwin Raymond and Ahimbisibwe Dickens, paving the way for a full-scale investigation by the Inspectorate of Government (IGG).The suspensions follow a directive issued by Inspector General of Government Lady Justice Naluzze Aisha Batala on July 1, 2026, acting on direct instructions from President Museveni after explosive allegations emerged that officials manipulated the route of the expressway for personal financial gain.The engineers have been ordered to immediately hand over all government property, official documents, project files, computers and equipment to their supervisors. They have also been barred from entering ministry offices or performing any official duties unless specifically authorised and must remain available throughout the investigations.The Inspectorate of Government praised the Ministry of Works for acting swiftly, saying the suspensions demonstrate government’s commitment to accountability, transparency and the fight against corruption.The suspensions come barely days after President Museveni ordered one of the biggest corruption investigations into Uganda’s road sector in recent years.In a strongly worded letter dated June 26, 2026, addressed to the IGG, the President expressed outrage over reports that the Busega-Mpigi Expressway had become a cash cow for corrupt officials.Museveni revealed that government initially borrowed about SHS600 billion from the African Development Bank to construct the modern expressway, but despite substantial disbursement of the money, only about 40 percent of the project has reportedly been completed.The President said intelligence available to him suggested that some engineers deliberately abandoned the original road alignment after government had already compensated landowners along the approved corridor.Instead, according to the President, the road was allegedly diverted through land owned by some of the very engineers supervising the project, forcing government to compensate another set of landowners at taxpayers’ expense.“The corrupt engineers altered the route of the road and avoided the route that was already compensated for and charted a new route going through their own lands that needed fresh compensation,” Museveni wrote.The alleged scheme, if proven, would rank among the most brazen abuses of office in Uganda’s infrastructure sector.The President says what started as a SHS600 billion expressway has now ballooned into a SHS1.7 trillion mega project, with repeated redesigns, fresh compensation claims and additional works contributing to the massive increase.Museveni also ordered the suspension of another engineer, Muleme, and directed Permanent Secretary Bageya Waiswa to proceed on leave to allow investigations to proceed without interference. Under Secretary Namugambe was appointed Acting Permanent Secretary.The investigations are being jointly conducted by the Inspectorate of Government and the Office of the State House Comptroller under Presidential Auditor David Tumwiine.The Busega-Mpigi Expressway is one of Uganda’s flagship infrastructure projects.Stretching about 23 kilometres with another 20 kilometres of access roads, the expressway forms part of the Northern Corridor linking Kampala to Masaka, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the wider East African region.The highway is expected to drastically reduce traffic congestion between Kampala and Masaka, improve road safety, lower transport costs and boost regional trade.Construction started in May 2020 after government awarded the contract to a Chinese joint venture comprising China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) and China Railway 19th Bureau Group Company Limited.Originally expected to be completed within three years, the project has instead suffered years of delays caused by compensation disputes, land acquisition challenges, COVID-19 disruptions, engineering redesigns and funding shortages.As costs escalated, government sought additional financing from the African Development Bank.In November 2025, the bank approved fresh funding after the original budget proved inadequate, pushing the total project cost to about SHS1.7 trillion, making it one of Uganda’s most expensive road projects.Government now expects the expressway to be completed around 2030, nearly seven years behind schedule.The scandal comes at a time when Parliament has repeatedly raised alarm over Uganda’s rising public debt, delayed infrastructure projects and billions of shillings lost through contract variations and compensation claims.Recent Auditor General reports have repeatedly questioned delays in externally financed projects, low absorption of borrowed funds and billions paid in commitment fees on undisbursed loans.The allegations could also trigger investigations under the Anti-Corruption Act, the Leadership Code Act, the Public Finance Management Act and the Penal Code if evidence emerges that officials abused their offices or fraudulently benefited from public compensation.For many Ugandans, the Busega-Mpigi saga has become more than just another corruption case.It has become a test of whether government is finally prepared to hold powerful public officials accountable for alleged abuse involving multi-billion-shilling infrastructure projects financed by taxpayers and international lenders.As investigators move in and more officials come under scrutiny, all eyes will now be on the Inspectorate of Government to determine whether the alleged route manipulation was simply poor engineering—or one of the biggest compensation scams ever uncovered in Uganda’s roads sector.GOT A HOT STORY? 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