Katakwi, Uganda – Over 80 women under the Usuk County Women’s Association in Katakwi District staged a peaceful protest on Monday, March 10, 2025, accusing State Minister for Education and Sports, Hon. Peter Ogwang, of diverting a tractor that was donated to them by President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni a decade ago.
The tractor, registration number UAZ 809B, was handed over to the group on January 20, 2015, during a community event in Ongogngoja Sub-county.
It was part of a presidential initiative to empower single mothers, widows and orphans through agricultural support, aiming to enhance productivity and reduce poverty among vulnerable groups.
According to the women, the tractor was taken away from their storage facility in Okocho, Okulonyo Sub-county by Mr. Gabriel Ogele Abuderi, who they identified as a mobilizer in Minister Ogwang’s campaign team.
The association said they only used the tractor briefly before it was collected under unclear circumstances.
The tractor was recently discovered impounded at Katakwi Central Police Station following a traffic incident where it was reportedly transporting manure.
The women expressed frustration that the equipment, meant to transform their lives, had been redirected for personal use.
Led by association leaders including chairperson Loy Akori, treasurer Betty Isaasit and secretary Mary Goretti Anyakoit, the women marched through Katakwi Town holding placards and demanding the return of the tractor.
They appealed to the President to intervene, saying that the donation had been abused and diverted by individuals already holding positions of power.
In an attempt to escalate the matter, several members of the association stormed the office of the Katakwi Resident District Commissioner (RDC), insisting that their grievance be reported directly to President Museveni.
According to sources at the Katakwi District Traffic Office, the tractor was impounded after a road accident and the station later received a phone call from Hon. Ogwang requesting for its release.
When contacted by Deputy RDC Vincent Savior Okwi, Hon. Peter Ogwang denied owning the tractor.
He reportedly said the tractor did not belong to him, but that he became involved because it was being misused.
The women continue to demand the immediate return of the tractor to fulfill its original purpose of empowering rural women through agriculture.
