Police has blocked a meeting organised by African initiative on food security and environment (AIFE-Uganda) on the impact of East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) project to Uganda and its economy.
Last week, Cabinet approved the license for the EACOP Company Limited to construct a 296 km long East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline in Uganda.
The approved pipeline construction project that will consume about 2,740 acres was awarded to a private company, EACOP Company Limited. The overall 1,443 km pipeline runs from Hoima district to the Port neighboring Tanzania.
The crude oil project which is worth 13.248 trillion Shillings (USD 3.6 million) traverses 171 villages across 10 districts of Kabaale, Hoima, Kikuube, Kakumiro, Kyankwanzi, Mubende, Ggomba, Ssembabule, Lwengo, Rakai and Kyotera.
The State Minister of Information Communication Technology-ICT and National Guidance, Godfrey Baluku Kyabyanga, and officials from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development communicated the development at a press conference at the Uganda Media Centre on Thursday.
On Tuesday, Police frustrated plans by opposition politician Dr. Kiiza Besigye and other opposition bigwigs including National Unity Platform principal Robert Kyagulanyi alias Bobi Wine from participating the debate at Emerald Hotel, on Bombo road in Kampala.
It was supposed to engage public on the effects of EACOP on the environment, human rights and the economy.
However, police officers erected several road blocks leading to the hotel to halt people from accessing it.
People’s Front for Transition (PFT), boss, Besigye was denied access and told to first seek permission from the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to participate.
He was later escorted by police to his offices on Katonga road in Kampala.
Besigye told journalists that police is acting unlawfully by stopping the public from holding indoor meetings yet the First son General Muhoozi Kainerugaba is allowed to hold rallies illegally.
“This is a small meeting in a hotel, there is no law that requires us to seek authorization from the IGP to hold a meeting in a hotel.I don’t know where police derives his mandate to stop people from having meeting inside a hotel. I have seen Gen Muhoozi a serving officers moving around the country holding political rallies and guarded by the same people.” He says
The East African Crude Oil Pipeline Company Limited has a shareholding of 62 percent from Total Energies while 15 percent will come from the host Government of Uganda through the National Oil Company.
Equally, the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania owns 15 percent shares through the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation-TPDC, and 8 percent shares for China National Offshore Oil Company-CNOOC Uganda Ltd.
On September 15, 2022, the European Parliament passed a controversial “emergency resolution” by a large majority denouncing the consequences of Uganda’s oil projects citing specifically Tilenga and the East African Crude Oil Pipeline.
However, two months later on November 2, 2022, the “emergency resolution” was overturned during the Joint Parliamentary Assembly of the African, Caribbean, Pacific – European Union (ACP-EU) sitting in Maputo, Mozambique. The Assembly voted to let Uganda proceed with developing the Pipeline Project.