MASINDI – According to a report presented by Deo Kabugo, the Masindi Municipality Town Clerk to the Members of the Parliamentary Accounts Committee (PAC), 99% of the registered people received Covid-19 relief cash.
Kabugo told the committee which was led by Basil Rwankwene Bataringaya, the Member of Parliament for Kashari North that out of 8,144 people who were registered to get the fund, only 62 missed.
“We don’t know why, because everything was submitted as it was required. We can’t tell why because the system doesn’t show where the problem is. The due process was followed while implementing the exercise. At least most of the beneficiaries who were supposed to benefit got the money,” said Kabugo while presenting the report to the committee on Tuesday at Masindi Municipality Mayor’s garden.
He added that the process was a bit slow because they delayed to get the Shs 4 million for the facilitation of the officials who were implementing the exercise.
Kabugo explained that the exercise was implemented by his office through the town agents and the assistant town clerks of different divisions.
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Ronald Businge Kyomuhendo, the Mayor of Masindi Municipality told the committee that the exercise was jointly carried out by the technical people, the leaders in the municipality, the office of the Resident District Commissioner (RDC) and the District Internal Security Office (DISO).
“I want to thank the government for minding about the people who had been directly affected by the lockdown,” he noted.
As a response to alleviate the impact of the lockdown due to Covid-19, the government allocated Shs 814,400,000 to 8144 beneficiaries in Masindi municipality.
Each beneficiary was allocated Shs 100,000. Some of the categories included; bodaboda riders, taxi operators and bus drivers, bar men and maids, barrow pushers, salon operators, DJs, producers and musicians among others.
Xavier Kyooma Akampurura, a Public Accounts Committee (PAC) member said they were in Masindi to establish the people who compiled the list of beneficiaries, to ascertain the process which was used to identify the beneficiaries, and to understand whether the beneficiaries got the finds.
“According to the presentation made by the Town Clerk and the Mayor, Masindi Municipality performance is good compared to other places we have been to. They did everything as it was required, the only challenge is the money was little compared to the people who wanted it,” said Bataringaya.
He said his team was tasked to go to Fort Portal City, Hoima City and Masindi Municipality, adding that Masindi and Hoima’s performance was good, but Fort Portal’s performance is the worst.
“We have taken the documents of Fort Portal City and they are going to be summoned to the committee. They replicated payments and it was characterised by poor accountability,” Bataringaya added.
He said that the challenge they found in Masindi is that the municipality has no database of its registered people in the different categories.
“You need to have a database. This will help you understand your people, to stay prepared in case there’s a disaster. This needs to be done immediately. We have understood that people worked under a lot of pressure because you have no database,” he advised.
He also told the committee that they are going to sit as a committee and compile a report which will be presented in parliament.
Dominic Tibasimwa, the deputy RDC Masindi asked the committee to also come and verify how other government programs are implemented but not only to stop on the Covid-19 relief funds.
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