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Lamwo, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A row has erupted between the Lamwo District Council Speaker Jimmy Amone and the Resident District Commissioner James Nabinson Kidega over the latter’s decisions to block the emergency council meetings.
This follows the disruption of two emergency council meetings in the district by a team of armed Local Defense Unit personnel and Police officers led by Kidega on June 29th and July 10th respectively at the district council hall.
Amone had convened an emergency council meeting for councillors to realign the boundary of the newly created Lamwo East County to suit the need of the community following concerns from the community and a section of local leaders.
Initially, the council had resolved for creation of Palabek County which consisted of boundaries of palabek kal Sub County, palabek town council, palabek ogili Sub County, Palabek Nyimur, Palabek Abera and Palabek Gem but wasn’t granted.
Amone says that Kidega had wrongly disrupted their meetings yet they had been permitted by the Local Government Minister Raphael Magezi.
Uganda Radio Network saw a copy of the WhatsApp communication between Amone and Magezi in which he seems to have authorized the speaker to proceed with the meeting but put strict adherence to standard operating procedures on fighting COVID-19.
Amone notes that before convening the meeting, the RDC was informed, but he never responded. He says convening the emergency council meeting was to send out a harmonized position given the fact that the interest of the people had not been fully captured.
But Kidega insists that the meeting was illegal adding that the councillors had no official letter of authorization from the local government Minister to warrant their council meeting.
“I couldn’t allow the meeting to go on because there was no official proof to their claims of notifying the minister. In local government, official work is not done via WhatsApp.” Kidega says.
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