Karamoja receives last batch of iron sheets

MOROTO, UGANDA | THE INDEPENDENT | The Office of the Prime Minister has delivered over 100,000 iron sheets to the districts in the Karamoja sub-region.  This is the last batch of the consignment to be distributed to the Karamojong reformed warriors who missed out on the first phase.

In November 2023, Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja flagged off the first consignment of 97552 iron sheets, which were distributed to 3,752 beneficiaries in February 2024. The iron sheets are part of the token that the government promised the reformed Karamojong warriors who voluntarily handed over their guns to the government and embraced peace.

On Wednesday, the team from the office of the prime minister started delivering iron sheets to the districts. The districts such as Napak received 1,352 pieces, Amudat received 962, Moroto received 1066, and Nakapiripirit received 780.

George Owanyi, the Nakapiripirit Resident District Commissioner, confirmed the receipt of the consignment of the iron sheets from the office of the prime minister.  Owanyi said that they received 780 iron sheets, which should be able to cover up the entire exercise.

Owanyi noted that the consignment is part of the final batch to be distributed to the reformed warriors and other vulnerable groups.

He noted that the token will also motivate other warriors who are in the bush to consider surrendering their guns to the security forces so that they can also benefit from the government programs.

Additionally, the St Peter’s Church of Uganda in the Nakapiripirit district also received a donation of 300 pieces of iron sheets from the prime minister’s office for the roofing of the church.

Rev Joshua Angella, the Parish Priest for St Peter’s Church of Uganda, confirmed that they have been supported with 300 iron sheets, and this has partially addressed the part of their construction challenge.

Angella said that they are looking forward to organizing a fundraising for other building materials, such as iron bars and other roofing materials.

Angella observed that, initially, the Christians used to pray under the tree as the number kept growing until they resolved to raise some money for the temporal structure.  He noted that the numbers continued to increase, and they took another step to construct a big church that accommodates over 600 congregations.

Molly Putin, the head of Christians, lauded the government for the support of the iron sheets.

Putin noted that they were overwhelmed by the demand for the church construction, and now their burden has been reduced. She also noted that although Christians are willing to support the works, they come from vulnerable backgrounds, and this hinders efforts to develop the church.

Ronnie Lorika, Chairperson of the Church Development Committee, said that the Christians struggled to raise money that pushed up to ring beam level, and now they are stuck.

Lorika said that they tried all avenues to collect money, but little was realized due to high rates of poverty in the community.

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