Seven years after becoming the first Ugandan woman to win a gold medal at the World Athletics Championships, runner Halima Nakaayi is still waiting for a promised government reward that she says was pledged at the highest level of power.
Nakaayi made history in Doha, Qatar, in 2019 when she powered to victory in the 800 metres, a triumph that placed her name among Uganda's greatest sporting achievements. Like other Ugandan champions before her, she expected the recognition to come with tangible support, including a house or a car.
That expectation has not been fulfilled.
A Promise Made at State House
According to Nakaayi, she raised the matter personally with President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni during a meeting at State House, where athletes were invited to present their medals.
"I got the opportunity to present my case to the President. I appreciated him for the support and for rewarding athletes. I also requested to be rewarded, as has been the case with previous champions," she said. "The President assigned Lucy Nakyobe, who confirmed that they would build a house for me and also buy me a car, which I am still waiting for."
Nakaayi said she later asked Nakyobe to put the commitment in writing so that the details would be clear, but the process has continued without a firm resolution. She noted that the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020 disrupted plans, yet repeated assurances that the matter would be handled have not translated into action.
"Things seemed to hit a hard rock when COVID-19 broke out in 2021, but I have always been promised that things would be handled. Up to date, I am still waiting," she added.
Conflicting Accounts
Former State House Comptroller Lucy Nakyobe has distanced herself from the alleged pledge, saying she has no knowledge of any commitment by the President to reward Nakaayi with a car or a house.
"For me, I know about three male athletes who were promised houses, and they were built, but in Nakaayi's case, personally, I have never heard about it," Nakyobe said.
Former State Minister for Sports Hamson Obua offered a different explanation, saying the presidential reward programme was limited to athletes who won medals at the Olympic Games, the Commonwealth Games and the All-Africa Games.
Uganda Athletics Federation president Dominic Otucet expressed concern that Nakaayi has received nothing despite her historic feat, noting that she was also left out when the government rewarded winners from the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
"I am concerned that she got nothing. When the government again rewarded the 2021 Tokyo Olympics winners, she missed out. As a federation, we are following up on all athletes whom the government promised rewards but who have never received them," Otucet said.
More Than Material Value
For Nakaayi, the issue extends beyond the worth of a house or a car. It is about recognition and about keeping promises made to athletes who carry Uganda's flag onto the global stage.
Her 2019 triumph remains one of the country's landmark moments in athletics. She defeated a strong field to claim the 800m title, becoming the first Ugandan woman to win a World Athletics Championships gold medal.
Her name is firmly written into Uganda's sporting history. The reward she was led to expect, however, remains outstanding, and with it a question about how seriously the country honours its commitments to its finest athletes.
