URN.The Auditor General’s report for FY 2020/202 revealed that groups such Lezebu Central Produce Traders received Shillings eight million Shillings in FY 2017/2018 and has never repaid. Another group, Abira-Alur Youth Grind Milling Project received seven million Shillings and has only paid Shillings 200,000 only in FY 2019/2020.
Lawmakers siting on Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee – PAC Local Government want tougher remedies to recover pending revolving funds disbursed to beneficiaries under various Government empowerment programmes.
Over the years, the Government implemented several life-changing interventions aimed at alleviating poverty such as the Uganda Women Entrepreneurship Programme – UWEP, Youth Livelihoods Programme, and the Presidential Initiative (Emyooga) among others.
Hundreds of beneficiary groups in the different districts across the country are required to refund the capital disbursed to them to aid new emerging groups. However, the Government through community Development Officers – CDOs have struggled to sustainably make recoveries.
Now the legislators want the beneficiaries audited and individual group members compelled to repay. They also want civil servants who irregularly benefitted from the interventions to be singled out and punished and the funds recovered by deducting their salaries.
Further, the MPs want Chief Administrative Officers – CAO, and CDOs to design road maps, including the time frame for the recovery of the funds failure which they should be compelled to make recoveries from their own pockets.
Dr. George Didi Bhoka, the Obongi County MP proposed that since previous funds disbursed and mismanaged without punitive measures against defaulters provide fertile ground for the failure of the upcoming government interventions shows bad legacy and the impunity must be addressed.
Kumi District Woman Representative, Christine Apolot pointed out that beneficiaries who defaulted under the UWEP and YLP have not being reprimanded, and similar practices of impunity will frustrate the ongoing PDM.
The Jonam County MP, Emmanuel Ongiertho suggested records of the beneficiaries under YLP and UWEP must be thoroughly reconciled so that they do not benefit from the PDM unless they have cleared their pending dues.
It has emerged that several Sub-County Chiefs, LC3 Chairpersons and Community Development Officers from Pader District have benefitted from the funds, and consequently are making it difficult for the District to recover the funds.
From the FY2015/2016, the District received over Shillings 900 million but by the end of FY 2020/2021, the District had only recovered four million Shillings.
Dr. George Didi Bhoka, the Obongi County MP noted that PDM will not succeed following mishandling of the previous funds.
Equally, from FY 2015/2016 to date Arua received a total disbursement Shillings 2.194 billion but only recovered 445 million Shillings representing 20.2 per cent recovery but 79.8 percent remains outstanding.
The Auditor General’s report for FY 2020/202 revealed that groups such Lezebu Central Produce Traders received eight million Shillings in FY 2017/2018 and have never repaid. Another group, Abira-Alur Youth Grind Milling Project received seven million Shillings and has only paid 200,000 Shillings only in FY 2019/2020.
From FY 2015/2016 to date, through the Ministry of Gender Labour and Social Development, the Government disbursed over Shillings 100 billion under the WEP, since then the Ministry has reported at least 70 per cent recovery.
Currently, Government has rolled out a new intervention, the Parish Development Model – PDM with a budget of Shillings 1.4 trillion to benefit 10,694 parishes each to receive Shillings 100 million in revolving funds for the next five years.
