The Lwemiyaga MP says he will work across political divides to address land disputes and improve roads, healthcare, education and access to clean water as he outlines his first 100 days in office.
Lwemiyaga County MP Emmanuel Rwashande has pledged to unite residents divided by years of political tension, saying his priority is to promote reconciliation and accelerate development in the constituency.
Rwashande, a retired brigadier general, made the remarks during a press conference in Kampala, where he outlined his achievements and priorities during his first 100 days in office.
Lwemiyaga, in Sembabule District, has experienced prolonged political divisions, with the most recent elections reportedly leaving residents further divided following incidents of violence and political tension.
Rwashande said he intended to bring residents together regardless of their political affiliations and ensure that development programmes benefited the entire constituency.
“Lwemiyaga has been divided for a long time, especially along political lines. My responsibility now is to bring our people together and ensure that development benefits everyone, regardless of their political affiliation,” he said.
He said the constituency had experienced political and social tensions for nearly 25 years, alongside challenges affecting residents’ livelihoods.
Rwashande identified land disputes as one of the major concerns, particularly cases in which money lenders allegedly take borrowers’ land after they fail to repay loans.
“We have cases where people have lost their land because of small amounts of money borrowed from money lenders. I have taken this matter seriously, and I will not allow people to lose their land unfairly because of such debts,” he said.
The MP said he had started addressing the issue during his first 100 days and pledged to continue working to protect residents from unfair land dispossession.
“We must protect the land of our people. No money lender should take advantage of a vulnerable person and unfairly take away their only source of livelihood,” he said.
On infrastructure, Rwashande said efforts were underway to improve roads across the constituency to ease transportation, support agricultural trade and promote tourism and investment.
“We want to improve our roads because good roads do not only help our people move and transport their produce, but they can also open up Lwemiyaga to tourism and investment,” he said.
He also acknowledged gaps in healthcare, saying some health facilities, particularly Health Centre IVs, needed additional equipment to improve service delivery.
“There is still a lot to be done in health. We are engaging government to ensure that our health facilities are equipped and upgraded so that our people can receive better services,” Rwashande said.
On water access, he said he was working with local leaders to extend reliable supplies of safe water to communities facing shortages.
“Access to clean water is a basic need. We are working with different leaders to make sure that our people have reliable access to safe water,” he said.
Education is another area of concern, with some communities facing shortages of schools. Rwashande said he was engaging the Ministry of Education and Sports over plans for the construction of seed schools and other government schools in the constituency.
“We have been informed that in the next financial year, government will support us with the construction of seed schools. This will help our children access education closer to their homes,” he said.
Rwashande acknowledged that some residents had not supported him in the elections but urged them to put political differences aside and work together for the development of the constituency.
He said he planned to establish committees to bring together different groups and promote cooperation among residents.
“Even those who did not support me are still my people. What matters now is service delivery. I am calling upon everyone in Lwemiyaga to come together so that we can develop our constituency,” he said.
Some residents have welcomed his stated focus on roads, healthcare, education, water access and land disputes, expressing hope that the initiatives will help address longstanding challenges in the constituency.