Tororo must start thinking big

COMMENT | Jackson Oboth |  I recently had what I would like to call a rediscovery mission in Tororo. A one-week stay in our beloved ‘Rock Town’ opened my eyes to many things. Today, I will focus my comment on one aspect of our town – the development agenda of our beloved soon-to-be City.

To many, all these aspirations by residents of Tororo and well wishers, may sound like a dream. They are not. Do not forget that, every milestone starts as a dream.

I will start with the once famed Senior Quarters.

Senior Quarters was in the 60s, 70s and even 80s, a model residential area in Tororo, where the town’s elite and civil servants brought up their families. We all know the prestige and honor once associated with living or owning property in the Senior Quarters in the 70s and 80s.

Today, the once glorious Senior Quarters is to say the least, a ghost section of town.

The area sticks out like a sore thump, lacking in all aspects. The once posh homes, the lush green environment complete with exotic species of trees are just but a sad reminder of the glorious past. You drive through Senior quaters at night and you are swallowed into the abyss of pitch black darkness. This was a once affluent neighbourhood that used to have street lights turned on 7pm sharp, on all its drives and roads. One half of it had an immaculately looked after golf course, at the foot of Tororo rock.

Amidst this grim situation however, there are folks with a vision and are trying to invest in the area for the future. One such person is the owner of Green Leave Meadows, a ‘Bed And breakfast’ facility that I would gladly rate at 5-Star. I do not know the owner of this facility but I apploud his vision and this set me thinking.

We can start by turning this Senior Quarters into a modern holiday destination. I noticed that there is a buleavard-size road, only found in the world’s major cities,  being constructed towards the Senior Quaters. If all goes well, it will join the main Malaba-Jinja road near Rock Classic Hotel.

The snail pace at which this project is being implemented not withstanding, the vision is commendable and I thank the Tororo Municipal Authority for it.

Together with the Mayor Tororo Municipality, municipal engineer and the contractor of Uhuru road, Dott services limited we launched the laying of asphalt base on the road that is funded by @Usmid_AF in Tororo municipality.@JudithNabakoob1 @ObothOboth @millybabalanda pic.twitter.com/yJ36dt4sOO

— Amula Albert (@AmulaAlbert) November 9, 2022

However it is about time the Municipal Authorities think of something much much bigger, that will restore Tororo’s reputation as one of the countries top towns and cities.

Something along the lines of a “Vision 2040” would focus on giving Tororo a facelift cominserate with international urban development trends.

I would suggest that at the core of this “Vision 2040” should be Senior Quarters.

Municipal authorities should show they are ready to turn the town into a city, by coming up with a deliberate policy to turn the eastern side of Tororo Rock where Senior Quarters is, into a bedrock of modernity. They can benchmark on what Green Leaf Meadows people have done and provide incentives.

They would need to attract investments to turn this beautiful area into a high end resort center complete with malls, classy appartments, hotels, high end guest houses and restaurants and rock climbing facilities.

The Municipal authorities should not look far for investors.

One source for investment are the many sons and daughters of Tororo who are spread across the the world.

While the municipal residents are a ‘United States’ of peoples, the majority Jopadhola should particularly be challenged to invest back home.

Many of them are well to do people sleeping on stacks of money. Many have put up mansions in Kampala and their village homes. They may actually be looking for investment opportunities, so this is the time to encourage them to come home and access land to invest.

I also know the Jopadhola to be patriotic people who love their town. Give them a reason to drive home every weekend to spend money here, the way folks in other regions do.

As it is now, even most of the Jopadhola who come to town on a daily basis to make a living, do not reside in Tororo. As the sun prepares to set in the western hemisphere, they also prepare to leave the town for villages. By 7 o’clock in the night, the beautiful town is abondoned to the ghosts, making it the worst town with no night life.

The transfomation of Tororo can only start by making it attractive for people who have money and would like to spend it here, in their home land.

We can start by providing incentives, and coming up with friendly policies that can make Tororo’s Senior Quarters, for example, a replica of the likes of the plosh Muthaiga in Kenya. It all starts with a vision. Not so?

As we plan to launch Rock City Radio, a platform that will serve as the springboard of development of Padhola, I trust that this is the kind of conversation we will have on air.

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Jackson Oboth is a Development Communications Specialist, Journalist and a Public Relations Practitioner.

LINK TO THE RADIO ONLINE