Renson Mwakandana
The European Union Parliament’s resolution urging Tanzania and Uganda to halt the development of their oil and gas projects in the East African area has been denounced by the Ugandan parliament.
The resolution, according to Uganda’s deputy speaker Thomas Tayebwa, is based on a deliberate distortion of important facts about the preservation of the environment and human rights. According to him, it is the height of imperialism and neo-colonialism in opposition to the sovereignty of Tanzania and Uganda.
The East African Crude Oil Pipeline (Eacop) project, which spans 1,443 km (896 miles) from Lake Albert in western Uganda to the Tanzanian port of Tanga on the Indian Ocean, is currently being built by Tanzania and Uganda.
The project will be the world’s longest heated oil pipeline when it is finished. The EU parliament resolution that was voted on Thursday warned of human rights violations and the social and environmental harm presented by the Eacop project, prompting Uganda’s response.
The EU Parliament recommends its member nations not to assist Uganda’s oil and gas projects financially or diplomatically.
Due to the project’s proximity to delicate ecosystems and protected regions, environmentalists have also protested against it.
