By Weswa Ronnie
MBALE DISTRICT
Two Mbale district officials have been served with interdiction letters from the office of the Chief Administrative Officer over extortion and including non-eligible members on Parish Development Model (PDM) lists.
The officers who received their letters on Friday, 25th October, 2024 are Esther Khawaka, Town Agent of Kitagulu Ward, Jew Town Council and Martin Walela, Parish Chief of Lumbuku Parish, Busiu Sub County in Mbale district.
According to the letter which was seen by our reporter, Walela while still working as town agent in Feb this year at Nakyanikile Ward, Jewa Town Council before being transferred to Busiu Sub County, was in involved in extortion of money from PDM beneficiaries and included non-eligible beneficiaries on the PDM SACCO Lists for his own benefit.
Physical verification report was conducted from 6th – 7th February, 2024, by George Wanakina, the PDM Focal Point Person and Agricultural Officer of Jewa Town Council and it was established that, the list of eligible beneficiaries Walela submitted to the district for payment was different from the list of the beneficiaries /SACCO members.
Eight members of Nakyanikile SACCO were not residents of the parish and were unknown to the SACCO leaders and members.
“This confirmed your conflict of interest in the entire process of disbursement of Parish Revolving fund (PRF),) reads the letter signed by the CAO, Luke L. Lokudo on the 24th October, 2024.
While Esther Khawaka has also been interdicted over extortion of money from Parish Development Model Funds beneficiaries for some time. The most recent being the Shs15 million which she extorted during the implementation of Parish Development Model activities.
She purported that the money taken was for registration of beneficiaries and opening of Bank Accounts. It was further alleged that she presented two people from Mbale City who received Parish Revolving fund under Bufukhula beneficiaries and on 27th October, 2023, she admitted to have erred.
The Physical verification of these complaints was also undertaken and it was found that she had her own interest in the entire process of disbursement of Parish Revolving fund according to Luke Lukoda in the interdiction letter.
“You were involved in extortion of money from the beneficiaries and included the non- eligible beneficiaries on the PDM SACCO lists for your own benefit. It was also found that you received UGX 2 million using two ineligible beneficiaries from Mbale City,” writes Lokuda.
George Wanakina, the Mbale district PDM focal person confirmed the interdiction of the duo saying investigations are going on when contacted on phone.
Naume Nakawala, the Mbale district Deputy Resident District Commissioner says that since this PDM program started, they have now punished four parish chiefs and two refunded the money they extorted from beneficiaries.
She urged other parish chiefs to take this punitive action against the two as an example and stop playing with this government program.
