Atiak Technical Student Association wait for government’s response 20 years later
GULU – Government is yet to respond to the request for support by the Atiak Technical Students Survivors Association in 2000. The students survived an attack by the Lord’s Resistance Army [LRA] rebels in Atiak trading center on the 20th of April in 1995. On the fateful day, a total of 350 people were murdered.
On 12th January 2000, the Association whose 45 colleagues, a teacher and 2 non-teaching staff died on the fateful day wrote a letter addressed to President Museveni seeking for educational and financial support to support the families of those who lost their lives and survivors.
On the 2nd of April 2021, the survivors wrote another letter to the President seeking for Shs1.1 billion support to establish a technical training facility and workshop.
However, to date, none of the letters written to the government has been replied.
Denis Nyero, the Chairperson of the student’s survivor association blame the government for neglecting them and supporting another group, the Atiak Massacre Survivors Association with a total of Shs50 million.
In their project proposal titled, Empowerment of the Atiak Technical Students Vulnerable Survivors, the survivors seek to establish a bricklaying and concrete practice facility at a tune of Shs384 million, Carpentry and Joinery, Shs73 million, Welding workshop, 6 million and administration which would cost Shs550 million.
Through this, Nyero believes the lives and livelihoods of the survivors would have been transformed.
According to Nyero, if funded, they hope that they would be able to train other vulnerable youths in the various technical practices which would play a big role in transforming the greater Atiak and the country and at large.
The team had hoped to submit their appeal to the Minister of State for Northern Uganda during the 27th commemoration of the Atiak massacre at Aiak Town Council headquarters. The Minister was a no show at the event.
Michael Lakony, the Amuru district LCV Chairperson, tasked the two groups to form a single group to help with lobbying saying if two or more groups emerge, there’s difficulty in soliciting and support in general.
Lakony , pledged to forward the concerns of the two groups to the government through the members of parliament representing the district.
Several of our efforts to get comments from Grace Kwiyocwiny, the Minister of State for Northern Uganda were futile as she neither picked nor returned our repeated phone calls.
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