FALSE: NO NEW UGX 1 MILLION FINE HAS BEEN INTRODUCED FOR DRIVERS WITH NO OR EXPIRED LICENCES
Claim
A viral video circulating on TikTok claims that all drivers in Uganda found driving without a license or with an expired license will be charged a UGX 1 million fine under new traffic regulations that have taken immediate effect.
The video is presented as a breaking news broadcast resembling an NBS Television report. At the time of publication, the post had attracted over 1000 likes, 81 comments and 373 shares. The video has also been widely reposted across TikTok, with some accounts repurposing it to advertise businesses, including driving schools.
Findings
Uganda’s existing traffic laws do not provide for a blanket UGX 1 million fine for all drivers without licenses or with expired licenses, as claimed in the video.
The Traffic and Road Safety Act, 1998, distinguishes between different offences relating to driving licenses and prescribes different penalties depending on the circumstances.
Under Section 121(4), a person who drives while holding a driving license that is capable of renewal but has not been renewed commits an offence and is liable, upon conviction, to a fine of between two and five currency points.
Under Uganda’s Interpretation Act, one currency point is equivalent to UGX 20,000. This means the penalty prescribed under Section 121(4) for a renewable license that has expired ranges from UGX 40,000 to UGX 100,000, not UGX 1 million.
In March 2024, Uganda Police announced a crackdown targeting motorists driving without valid licenses, including those whose licenses had expired or were out of class. However, the enforcement operation did not introduce a new blanket UGX 1 million fine as claimed in the viral video.
The Traffic and Road Safety (Express Penalty Scheme for Road Traffic Offenders) Regulations, 2024, which are currently the official regulations governing express penalties for listed traffic offences, prescribe a fixed penalty system for specified offences. The regulations were made in July 2024 and revoked the previous 2013 Express Penalty Scheme regulations.
The regulations list driving without a valid driving license or valid learner driving license among offences subject to an express penalty of UGX 100,000, not UGX 1 million.
Additionally, a review of recent publications on the official Uganda Police Force website did not identify any announcement introducing a new UGX 1 million fine specifically targeting drivers with no licenses or expired licenses. The Uganda Police website remains the appropriate official channel for verifying enforcement announcements attributed to the force.
The video itself also carries TikTok’s label indicating that it contains AI-generated media, raising further questions about its authenticity.
The claim therefore falsely presents a UGX 1 million penalty as an immediate new traffic regulation, despite the existing legal framework prescribing different penalties for license-related offences.
Visual red flags in the video
Several inconsistencies in the video raise doubts about its authenticity as an NBS Television broadcast.
First, the video timestamp shows 5:00 AM, yet a review of NBS Television‘s program schedule found no news bulletin scheduled for that time.
Second, the graphics contain inconsistencies with NBS branding. Below the main breaking-news banner is an “NP” graphic and a headline reading “Uganda Police: Measures aimed at improving road safety.” However, the NP branding used on genuine Nile Post/NBS broadcasts has a distinct design, featuring red and blue colors with white lettering, unlike the version displayed in the viral video.
The alleged headline was also traced through Nile Post’s official Road Safety coverage, but no corresponding story or announcement carrying the headline could be found.
There are also apparent inconsistencies with the police officers shown behind the reporter. The uniforms worn by the supposed traffic officers do not match the standard uniforms associated with Uganda’s traffic police, raising further questions about whether the background scene was artificially generated.
Finally, attempts to independently identify or geolocate the buildings and surroundings behind the reporter were unsuccessful. While this alone does not prove that the scene is AI-generated, it adds to the other inconsistencies in a video already labelled by TikTok as containing AI-generated media.
Methodology
We reviewed the Traffic and Road Safety Act, 1998, particularly provisions relating to driving without a valid license and driving with a license that has expired but is capable of renewal.
We also reviewed the Traffic and Road Safety (Express Penalty Scheme for Road Traffic Offenders) Regulations, 2024, a statutory instrument published in the official legal database, to establish the current express penalties applicable to specified traffic offences.
Additionally, we checked the official Uganda Police Force website for recent announcements regarding the alleged introduction of a UGX 1 million fine.
To check for authenticity, we examined the visual elements and details of the viral video and compared them with publicly available NBS Television programming and branding.
Verdict: FALSE.
Uganda has not introduced a blanket UGX 1 million fine for all drivers found without licenses or with expired licenses. Existing laws prescribe different penalties depending on the specific offence, including fines ranging from UGX 40,000 to UGX 100,000 for a renewable license that has expired, while the 2024 Express Penalty Scheme lists UGX 100,000 for driving without a valid driving license.
The viral video therefore misrepresents Uganda’s traffic laws and falsely presents the alleged UGX 1 million fine as a newly introduced regulation.