Day

BY AMBROSE KWERONDA

KABALE DISTRICT

A team from UPDF has today 06/01/2023 verified their veterans from Kabale district who have not been received pension funds.

This exercise was held at Kabale district Rukiiko hall by the UPDF team from Kampala purposely to ensure that veterans have acquired their pension funds after serving as UPDF

Lt Can Keneth Wabwire the director of information and documentation and gratuity heading a team of verification pensioners who were on government payroll that were dropped during September last year (7/2022) following the exercise that was conducted in February last year and wanted to verify updf pensioners in their districts physically.

Wabwire added that they doing this because of the outcry from the public as the people who were on payroll complaining and more fraudsters on payroll and wanted to clear it all and clean it forever and those people were given a grace period of 6 months from February to August and that’s why to decide and turn up back for them because they were suspended temporarily.

This service is done to entire kigezi region by visiting each district and in kabale they are only looking for 154 pensioners who were on payroll but suspended temporarily but some are turning up others remaining behind,various veterans are campaigning of funds and lack some documents of veteran discharge certificate, bank statement, National identity card and passport because when the all documents are available are attached and sent to UPDF headquarters then gain the funds.

Wabwire concluded that widows and orphans complaining money of their beloved relatives should have the deceased’s certificate, family minutes and LC1 letter bank statement, letters of administration and then to be given their money.

They documented 25,000 veterans in 2019 of which 11,000 were paid 3,000 put on pay roll and 14,000 whose files are completely ready for payments as they await releases from the government and requested the claimers to keep their accounts active by depositing 10,000.

In this service the team has faced some challenges where the veterans, orphans and widows are failing to raise death certificate, bank services and advised them to go for them at the police and then to Bombo for final verification

Those who have failed to reach Kabale district headquarters are required to visit them while still in Rukungiri, Rukiga and Kanugu districts and whoever fails to do so will have to find them in Kampala.

By Our reporter
RUKUNGIRI

Rukungiri District Council has today Friday 6th January 2023 rejected a motion presented by Works and Productions Committee to procure a vehichle for the District chairperson.

The motion was presented by the District Executive Committee chairperson and LC5 Vice chairperson Santurina Nahwera during a council sitting held at the District Council hall.

The Chairperson has been using a vehicle that was recieved by the district in the 2011/2016 term it has accumulated a repair bill of over 30 million since it was handed over to the current chairperson Kyomukama Geoffrey

Santurina Nahwera revealed the chairperson’s Vehicle has brokedn down on several occasions which has hindered service delivery and appealed to the council to mobilize funds to procure ta new vehicle.
The District Councilor representing Buyanja Sub County Mugisha Albert Rwamugaata emphasized that the District has no capacity to purchase such a costly vehicle at the expense of tax payers and suggested lobbying from the Central government.
The District Councilor representing Kebisoni Town Council David Kwebangira said that providing transport means is the role of central government and not the District.
The LCV chairperson Kyomukama Geoffrey said that lack of transport means lowers his performance.
The Rukungiri Chief Administrative Officer Hajj Masokoyi Wasswa revealed they will sustain the current vehicle until they receive a replacement.

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MASINDI:
The Uganda State House Controller Jane Barekye has asked the graduates to be job creators but not seekers.

She was on Thursday presiding over the graduation ceremony of 209 trainees at Bunyoro Industrial Hub.

The hub is located in Nyakarongo village Kimengo sub county Buruli Constituency in Masindi district.

Barekye disclosed that the main objective of the industrial hub is to fight against employment among the youth by skilling them.

”The presidential initiative on industrial hubs is to skill the youth to be job creators but not seekers,” she said.

Barekye therefore asked leaders in Bunyoro to prioritize the needy since the industrial hub targets the most needy families.

The state house controller also implored the trainees to put in use the skills attained in order to improve their household income and fight against poverty in their areas.

She therefore asked leaders to ensure the trainess benefit from government programs such as emyooga, parish development model and others to enable them put in use the skills attained.

The Manager Bunyoro Industrial Hub Turyahebwa Scovia Agatha said the students are now well equiped and ready to propel in social economic transformation of Bunyoro and Uganda at large.

She disclosed that they admitted 220 students from the ten administration units of Bunyoro, however, 11 dropped out due to chronic diseases like ulcers, sickle cells and others.

According to Turyahebwa, each administration unit in Bunyoro had a slot of 22 trainees.

The ten administration units in Bunyoro are: Buliisa, Masindi, Kiryandongo, Kibaale, Kagadi, Kikuube, Kakumiro and Hoima districts.

Others are Masindi Municipality and Hoima City.

The hub manager asserted that 209 trainees were assessed for the Directorate Of Industrial Training {DIT} on 21st and 22nd December 2022.

The trainees attained DIT level one certficates in tailoring, welding, hairdressing and carpentry.

Turyahebwa asked the state house controller to increase the admission slots from 220 to 400 due to high demand from the public.

The Masindi district LCV Chairperson Cosmas Byaruhanga revealed that the students who attained the skills were from the most needy families.

He challeged leaders in other districts in the region to ensure the students sent for the training are from the needy families since it targets them.

The Kimengo Sub County LC3 Chairperson Bright Mugume commended the government for the initiative and said will boost the fight against employment in the region.

Bunyoro Industry Hub is among the eleven hubs in the country established under the presidential initiative for establishment of zonal industrial hubs for youth and women.

By KWeronda Ambrose
KANUNGU DISTRICT

Kanungu Deputy Resident District Commissioner Gad Ahimbisibwe Rugaju has today 06/01/2023 appealed to the residents of Kibimbiri Parish to remain calm as government prepare to start fencing off the Queen Elizabeth Conservation Area to protect them from stray animals.

Deputy RDC Ahimbisibwe Rugaju made the remarks today while speaking to residents of Kameme village in Kihihi Sub County where a stray elephant mauled and killed a 53 year old man.
According to Kihihi Sub County Chairman Nelson Natukunda, the deceased identified as Monday Boniface was killed by a stray elephant last night while he was guarding his potato garden from being destroyed by the wild animals from Queen Elizabeth National Park.

He promised the residents that he is going to follow up the government pledge to fence off the national park as promised which is expected to start this month

According to the residents says that two elephants strayed from the nearby Queen Elizabeth Conservation Area last and started destroying their crops which prompted them to try and force them back to the national park

However, as the elephants moved towards the National park, they came across the deceased at around 10:30 pm while he was also guarding his potato garden near his homestead where he was attacked and killed instantly.

The residents complained that despite the government putting on place an enabling law providing for compensation of crops, domestic animals and human lives destroyed by wildlife animals, it has not been affected and people continue to suffer the consequences.

The residents have since threatened to kill the wildlife animals when they are cited in their gardens since the Uganda Wildlife Authority rangers have failed in their duty to drive the animals back to the Park whenever they attack.

The body of the late Monday was conveyed to Kihihi Health Center IV Mortuary for postmortem examination to be carried out before it was handed over to the relatives for burial.

BY Our reporter
MBARARA

The Justice of the court of appeal, Catherine Bamugemerire has said that society is still reluctant in fighting against domestic violence despite government effort towards stopping the vice.

Bamugemerire recalling the time she was taken aback by the number of domestic violence cases with similar story line during the court of appeal criminal session in Mbarara, said that most victims lost lives as neighbors and relatives who would have helped remained reluctant after hearing the fights.

Justice Catherine Bamugemerire said this during a conference for women of excellence organized by Proclaim Africa and held at Mbarara high school.

Proclaim Africa is a Christian ministry that targets Christian women leaders and professionals with spiritual convictions, training them to deal with women’s challenges and make a great impact on families and the communities.

Bamugumerire said much as government wishes to do away with domestic violence, poverty among women is still hindering this effort because they cannot be able to speak up in case they are abused and called on women of excellence basing on Christian values to raise up and deal with such kind of societal issues that infringe on women rights.

She said its high time people have to go back to responsible Christianity where Christians should not only care about wealth but also care about their behavior and the soul of a person adding that groups like women of excellence are so important because in this case they can help women get together, encourage each other to become both spiritually strong and economically independent to easily negotiate their relationships better.