The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Lwengo, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Village and parish council leaders in Lwengo district are calling for a special audit into the implementation of the Emyooga program, a presidential initiative aimed at wealth and job creation citing ghost beneficiaries.
According to the lower local council leaders, many of the program beneficiaries appearing on the implementation schedules are unknown in their areas, which casts a veil of uncertainty about its success.
During the district stakeholder’s meeting that was called to evaluate the performance of government programs in the area, the leaders questioned figures in the report compiled by the District Commercial Officer, about the bulk of credit that has been injected into the area.
Wilson Kagumire, the Lwengo District Commercial Officer indicates that in the last two financial years, at least 3.5 billion Shillings has been disbursed to over 120 enterprise groups, the majority of which he says have defaulted on their repayment obligations.
He indicated that some of the defaulters have since changed their addresses, hence complicating the process of tracing them. But Kassim Tebasoboke, the Chairperson of Kinene ward in Kisseka sub-county, argues that they can hardly trace the beneficiaries of Emyooga program funds in their area yet they have been asked to support the recovery process.
He has asked Hud Hussein, the Lwengo Resident District Commissioner to commission an audit into the implementation of the Emyooga program, arguing that part of the funds could have gone to ghost beneficiaries.
Harunah Kaweesi Ssalongo, the Chairperson of Kaboyo-Sula zone in Kinoni town council, says that they are yet to register any visible impact from the huge sums of money that are said to have been disbursed to their communities, something that rises serious suspicion on who received the money.
According to Kaweesi, the ambiguous implementation and the high default rate of the Emyooga funds creates a bad precedent that may affect the effectiveness of similar wealth-creation initiative the government plans to roll out.
He has called upon the office of the RDC to ask the government to halt the utilization of Parish Development Model-PDM funds in the area, until a special audit on the previous programs is carried out, to guide proper future planning.
Ignatius Muggaga Ssekabuuza and Badru Muwanga, the Chairpersons of Bulemere Ward and Namulaba Village respectively in Lwengo town council, say it was an omission by the program implementers to sideline the lower local councils leadership that would have helped in the vetting of the beneficiaries.
These have warned that the biggest percentage of the money may completely be lost if the government does not subject it to serious scrutiny, to establish loopholes through unscrupulous people misused.
In response, Huudu Hussein the Lwengo Resident District Commissioner has also lashed out at the District Commercial and Community Development Officers whom he blamed for dodging him every time he requests the program performance reports for follow-up.
He indicates that is considering engaging the Microfinance Support Center, Masaka Zonal Branch asking for an independent evaluation of the program performance in the area.
*****
URN
Dear manager thank you for your help to improve our community by bringing easy ways to get knowledge.
So I kindly request from you to present an office where it is easier to reach for more information. and also to take our inquiry from our communities .
Which may help us to be involved in the development at large.