By Weswa Ronnie
OYAM
Police on Monday, 10th June, 2024 detained six accounting officers, an IT specialist, a community development officer, and four others in Oyam District.
The individuals are being held on suspicion of not returning census equipment belonging to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS).
The equipment in question includes 104 power banks and several hundred tablets that remain unaccounted for.
These devices were used in the National Population and Housing Census 2024, which has recently concluded.
William Komakech, the Resident District Commissioner (RDC) for the area, has stressed the need to recover the missing equipment for future use. He has called on the public to alert authorities if they come across any of the missing devices.
Komakech has made it clear that the suspects will remain in custody until the census machines are found and returned.
He pointed out that we live in a digital age and these machines will still be needed in the future.
Edison Muhangi, the Oyam District Police Commander, has confirmed the arrests and stated that investigations are ongoing. He warned that if the missing machines are not returned within the next 48 hours, the suspects will be taken to court.
For the recently concluded National Housing and Population Census 2024, UBOS provided Oyam District with 1,487 tablets and 1,409 power banks.
However, some of these items have not yet been returned.
