Luuka parish chief arrested over ghost PDM beneficiaries
LUUKA – Police in Luuka district in eastern Uganda have arrested a parish chief for allegedly registering ghost beneficiaries under the Parish Development Model [PDM] as well as extorting money from enterprise groups.
The suspect is Grace Muzira, the parish chief of Busalam West in Luuka district. It is also alleged that the suspect extorted money from the public under the guise of registering them for PDM.
Micheal Kasadha, the Busoga North police spokesperson confirmed that the suspect has been charged with extortion among other charges.
According to the police, the suspect was caught registering ghost beneficiaries whom she could not provide details for.
He said the Muzira is currently detained at Luuka Central Police Station awaiting to be produced in court.
He said police has opened a file to investigate a number of issues in Busalam West parish.
Kasadha warned civil servants against fighting the government programmes aimed at uplifting the livelihoods of citizens.
Recently, Raphael Magyezi, the minister of Local Government, warned district officials against misusing funds intended for the PDM, warning that if caught, the culprits would face dire consequences.”
“We shall not only arrest you but also compel you to refund all the money. If you don’t have the money, we shall sell all your property at home. This money is meant for the poorest of the poor. You are not even ashamed of stealing this one [PDM money],” he said.
The PDM launched in February 2022 aims to lift the 39 percent of Uganda’s population from the subsistence to money economy and has seven pillars of; Production, Storage, Processing and Marketing; Infrastructure and Economic Services; Financial Inclusion; Social Services; Mindset change; Parish Based Management Information System; and Governance and Administration.
In its maiden year, the government has fronted the third pillar of financial inclusion [revolving fund] as a flagship for the PDM where government beginning with the financial year 2022/2023 will give each parish Shs 100 million each year for the beneficiaries of the programme to borrow for commercial production.
The beneficiaries are expected to use in enterprises such as coffee, grains, cereals, dairy farming, poultry keeping, piggery, beekeeping, and fruits among others.
The programme is planned for five years and is expected to cover 10.594 parishes across the country, with government earmarking over Shs 1 trillion each year for it.
https://thecooperator.news/minister-babalanda-orders-rdcs-to-arrest-officials-failing-pdm/
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