Tororo Spiro Riders Lock Sales Agent Inside Office Over Battery Shortage

More than 50 electric motorcycle riders in Tororo Municipality took matters into their own hands on Thursday, locking a Spiro sales agent inside the company office on Bazaar Street. The protest erupted after riders spent three consecutive days unable to operate their e-bikes due to a severe shortage of charged batteries at the town’s lone swapping station.

According to the Tororo Spiro Riders Association chairperson, Mr Yokim Owor, the single swapping station serves over 200 riders in a district with thousands of e-bikes. Since Sunday, the station reportedly ran completely out of power, leaving motorcycles grounded. Despite earning zero income, riders noted that Spiro continued to enforce daily loan deductions ranging between Shs10,500 and Shs25,000, plunging operators deeper into debt.

Mr James Okitwi, one of the affected riders, explained that his family has struggled to put food on the table after his bike remained parked for days while automated text messages continued to demand loan payments. Other operators, including Tororo Hospital worker Dr Awino Hariet Kyoto, shared similar frustrations, stating they were forced to borrow money from neighbors just to clear daily loan fees and prevent their motorcycles from being remotely locked by the company.

The trapped sales agent, Mr Thomas Emurukut, was held inside the office from 11am until about 2pm. Witnesses stated the drastic measure was taken to force him to escalate their grievances to the company’s head office in Kampala. Mr Emurukut later explained that a three-day regional power blackout had crippled local charging capabilities, forcing them to rely on limited battery transports from Mbale.

Following the hours-long standoff, Mr Emurukut confirmed that he had forwarded the riders’ demands to management. These demands include the immediate establishment of additional battery-swapping stations in Tororo and the suspension of loan repayments for days when riders cannot access power.

Read more about this incident in the Daily Monitor.