Singer Liam Voice has weighed into the growing controversy over proposed changes to fees on the Kampala-Entebbe Expressway, questioning the reasoning reportedly being used to justify the increase.
The singer took particular issue with the reported reference to rising sugar prices, arguing that the explanation was difficult to understand given the nature of the road and the costs already facing ordinary Ugandans.
“The diplomats are busy discussing increasing the Express Highway fares depending on how the charges have always been paid. But one of the reasons they are giving is the increased price of sugar,” Liam Voice said.
“But this country! There are some issues you look at and just laugh them off. You don’t laugh because the matter is funny; you laugh because of anger and bitterness. Imagine, does the Express Highway consume sugar?”
Liam Voice’s comments come as the expressway’s user fees become the subject of a wider parliamentary debate.
The Parliamentary Committee on Physical Infrastructure has called for the immediate termination of the operator’s contract, recommending that the Ministry of Works and Transport take over the road’s operations and maintenance.
The committee has also recommended changes to how toll revenue is collected, including having the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) take over revenue collection and introducing electronic payment systems.
For Liam Voice, however, the debate hits particularly hard because motorists and households are already dealing with rising costs.
He argued that an increase in sugar prices would ordinarily mean citizens have to adjust their household budgets. Adding higher expressway charges on top of that, he said, would put even more pressure on people’s finances.
“I believe that when there is a hike in sugar prices, as a citizen, you just get to know that your usual budget has stretched a bit,” he said. “And now these guys also just want to stretch it further.”
The singer also expressed frustration over the people making decisions about the country’s costs, saying he found it troubling that such considerations could feature in boardroom discussions.
The parliamentary committee has meanwhile proposed a forensic audit of the Egis/Pinnacle tolling system to establish and recover government revenue it says may have been lost.
The committee cited UGX 314.355 million reportedly linked to alleged illegal free passes as part of the revenue concerns requiring investigation.
As the debate over the expressway’s future operations and user fees continues, Liam Voice’s central question remains blunt: if sugar prices are being cited in the discussion, “does the Express Highway consume sugar?”