The Kyenjojo District LCV Chairman, William Kaija has clashed with councilors over the 80 million shillings that was returned by the area Members of Parliament to be used to fight the Coronavirus (COVID-19).
The incident happened during a heated debate during the Kyenjojo council session on Friday evening.
Few weeks ago, the Clerk to Parliament Jane Kibirige issued a letter to all legislators directing them to return the 10 billion shillings in total that they had been allocated and give it to their respective Chief Administrative Officers – CAOs.
According to Kibirige, the decision had been taken following a meeting of the Parliamentary Commission.
Consequently, the four MPs in Kyenjojo namely; Aston Peter Kajara (Mwenge South), Spellanza Muhenda Baguma (Woman MP Kyenjojo), Tom Butime (Mwenge Central) and Lawrence Akugizibwe (Mwenge North) returned the money and handed it over to the Kyenjojo CAO, Samuel Kaija.
During the council session, the district chairman, Kaija, proposed that the money be used to buy relief food for the starving families in the area. But his suggestion was strongly opposed by the councilors who said the money should instead be used to buy an ambulance.
The councilors argued that the food being donated to the COVID-19 task force in the district is enough for the mean time and since the district is currently having only one ambulance, the funds can be used to procure another one that will benefit the majority of patients referred from Kyenjojo General hospital or Fort Portal regional referral hospital.
Elson Niwamanya, the district councilor representing Kanyegaramire Sub County said that they have even got information that the food being donated to the task force is not fairly distributed to the intended beneficiaries and so it would not be wise to allocate them more money.
Enock Fred Kaahwa, the Kyenjojo Male Youth Councillor, added that they have not seen any value for money in the food the task force has been procuring and supplying and hence the disagreement with Kaija.
The situation was saved by the District Finance Officer and CAO’s representative, Emmanuel Agaba Rwebitara, who told Councillors to cool down because the money was received as a grant and it’s not the district to decide what to use it for since it has to go back to the consolidated fund.
Rwebitara said he will now wait for communication from the
Permanent Secretary Ministry of Finance for guidance on how the money
should be used incase its reallocated to Kyenjojo and it’s then that a
new proposal will be taken back to council for deliberation.
The News Editor ,Reporter at Kagadi Kibaale community Radio
