NAMISINDWA – Five executive committee members of a local PDM SACCO in Namisindwa district have been arrested over allegations of extorting money from the beneficiaries of the government programme aimed at fighting household poverty.
According to the Parish Development Model [PDM] guidelines, the PDM SACCO executive committee plays an oversight role towards the implementation of support provided to enterprise groups by various state and non-state actors.
Those arrested include Peter Soita, Steven Wabulakha, George Mutabali, and Teopista Mukhana, all of whom are executive members of Bumuyonga Group -Bubutu PDM SACCO.
The suspects were arrested on the orders of Namisindwa resident district commissioner, Imran Muluga following several complaints from the PDM beneficiaries.
Muluga said the suspects were extorting money from the PDM beneficiaries as an enticement to approve the latter’s access to their money in bank accounts.
He said the five suspects will appear in court after investigations are completed.
“As a result, the office of the RDC has tasked the technical team to further publish the PDM guidelines for the community to identify the persons who don’t qualify but are on the lists of the beneficiaries,” he said.
Meanwhile, three government officials have been charged and remanded to Luzira Prison for allegedly diverting Shs 526 million meant for the implementation of the PDM in Kitgum district.
This brings the number of district officials implicated in the PDM money scandal to 20, with government recovering about Shs 2.4 billion, which had been misappropriated by the officials.
The three officials in trouble are Stephen Omony Lakwonero, the principal assistant secretary, Joel Musisi, the Kitgum district chief administrative officer, and Agnes Aryemo, the sector accountant.
The PDM launched in February 2022, is an initiative run under the Ministry of Local Government with the aim to get 3.5 million households out of the subsistence economy to the money economy through financial inclusion which is pillar 3 of the PDM.
https://thecooperator.news/dont-spend-pdm-money-on-parties-namisindwa-residents-warned/
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