SOROTI CITY, August 25, 2026 — Soroti City West Division Deputy Resident City Commissioner, James Kyomya, has revealed plans to meet SACCO leaders as part of efforts to clean up the Parish Development Model [PDM] programme, which he said has been marred by corruption.
“We have received a lot of complaints that there were ghost PDM beneficiaries and therefore want to have a baraza in all the wards,” Kyomya said.
He made the remarks on Monday during the swearing-in of 72 local leaders at the Soroti City West Division offices. The team comprises 60 LC1 chairpersons and 12 LC2 chairpersons from the 12 wards that make up the division.
Kyomya called for a comprehensive list of all PDM beneficiaries to verify whether they are drawn from all the wards, in order to ensure equitable distribution and transparency in the programme.
He urged PDM beneficiaries to exercise financial discipline, noting that many had diverted the funds to pay school fees and for personal expenses instead of investing the money for its intended purpose.
Kyomya said the restocking programme had also registered few success stories because many beneficiaries had misused the funds.
He added that only a few beneficiaries had actually bought cows as intended under the restocking programme, while the majority had diverted the funds to other uses.
Kyomya urged the new leaders to serve with honesty, shun corruption, remain vigilant and actively participate in the implementation of government programmes.
“We want to ensure that you serve your communities diligently, shun corruption, be vigilant and participate in the implementation of government programmes,” he said.
He warned that there would be no room for criminality under the new leadership, saying any leader found involved in crime would be arrested and handed over to police.
Service delivery
On service delivery, Kyomya noted that some villages share official stamps and called for stamps to be provided to leaders to enable them to perform their duties effectively.
The stamps were later handed over to the local leaders by their LC2 chairpersons, who urged them to use them responsibly.
In his concluding remarks, Kyomya congratulated the newly sworn-in leaders and urged them to promote development, peace and unity. He emphasised that leadership is about service and called on the leaders to be exemplary, accessible and accountable.
Soroti City West Division Mayor, John Enomu, urged local leaders to allow other community members to benefit from the restocking and PDM programmes, saying everyone would eventually get their share.
“Money for restocking and PDM is soon coming to cells, but before you benefit, give others first,” Enomu said.
He also said local leaders often keep quiet about wrongdoers, particularly when their own children are involved, but encouraged them to lead by example.
Enomu further cautioned leaders against demanding payments for introductory letters, saying the service is free.
The Soroti City West Division Police Commander, Moses Nabongo, warned that beneficiaries who fail to repay PDM and Emyooga funds could be arrested. He urged beneficiaries to use the money for its intended purpose.
Nabongo also asked the leaders to elect village security committees to help curb insecurity.
He said capital offences such as defilement, murder and human trafficking should not be handled at local level but referred to police. He warned that leaders who handle such cases would face the full force of the law.
Some of the leaders who spoke to this publication welcomed their swearing-in.
Susan Deborah Aino, the LC1 chairperson of Lubiri Cell in Nakatunya Ward, said she was happy to take office and pledged to work closely with the community.
She said she would sensitise communities about government programmes and ensure that residents benefit from them to improve their livelihoods.
Launched in February 2022, the PDM is a government initiative which aims at moving 3.5 million households from subsistence farming to the money economy. The programme gives each beneficiary a soft loan of Shs 1 million for investment in selected enterprises such as coffee, dairy, piggery, fish farming, and poultry keeping, among others
https://thecooperator.news/govt-disburses-over-shs-3-9bln-to-soroti-for-cattle-restocking/
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