Sacked driver attempts to sink bus with 60 on board

By Wilson Asiimwe

A bus driver who was recently sacked from Link bus company on Thursday hijacked a bus which was loading in Kasese town and attempted to sink it in Kazinga channel with 60 passengers on board.

Abdullah Manilangwa hijacked the bus which was loading near Shell petrol station and drove it towards Kazinga channel but he was quickly intercepted by the Police which blocked the road at Katunguru.

"He drove the hitherto Kampala bound bus towards the opposite route of  Kasese - Mbarara road. He reportedly told the passengers that he was going to die with them by driving the bus into Kazinga Channel, Dinah Mwagale Mudusu, one of the survivors, narrated.

Mudusu said that Manilangwa told them that he was going to drown the bus into Kazinga channel and told them to start praying so that God can receive their souls.

"When we had just by passed Muhokya trading center the driver told us to start praying for our souls because he was going to die with us because he was going to sink the bus into the lake," said Mudusu.

Three people were admitted to Kilembe hospital after sustaining injuries as they were attempting to jump out of the bus through the windows.

Alex Baluku, a conductor with Link bus said that Manilangwa had always told them that he was going to make history in Uganda.

"We are not surprised by this incident because he has always said since he was sacked he was going to make history by dying with other people," said Baluku

The Kasese district police commander, Bob Kagarura, said that they received information that a stranger had hijacked a bus which was loading and he was driving at a very terrible speed with the aim of causing an accident.

"Even when he was driving he was was on the wrong side of the road where he intended to ram into a vehicle but thank  God that all the vehicles were veering to the national park because of the reckless driving," said Kagarura.

He said that Manilangwa had been sacked from Link Bus Company because of indiscipline but he had been hanging around shell petrol station were the buses loaded from.

"We have him in our cells and we could charge him with terrorism because he caused a lot of panic among people and many are in hospitals as a result of his indiscipline," said kagarura.