By KT Reporter
Residents in the Bunyoro sub-region have tasked President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni to take stern action against officials implicated in the extortion of Parish Development Model-PDM beneficiaries.
President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni will start his tour in the Bunyoro sub-region on Tuesday to assess the implementation and progress of the Parish Development Model (PDM).
Residents in the area want the President to take personal interventions to tackle the problem of extortion that they say has frustrated the smooth implementation and progress of the initiative in the region.
People seeking to benefit from the program say they are being asked by some of the implementers to pay between 100,000 and 200,000 shillings. The residents now want the President to clarify why they are being forced to pay the money to benefit from the program.
Mbabazi Talemwa, a resident of Bugambe sub-county in Kikuue says, the President should personally intervene and take stern action against the implementers of the Parish Development Model accused of extortion.
Patrick Musinguzi, a resident of Kigorobya town Council in Hoima district reveals that officials implementing the program have been extorting between 100,0000 and 250,000 shillings from each person seeking to benefit from the parish Development Model-PDM. This he says, has frustrated efforts by many people to benefit from the initiative.
William Wandera, a resident of Kiganda in Hoima city says, that most people seeking to benefit from the program have lost morale after they were asked to pay money to be considered, a thing he wants the president to personally address when he is in Bunyoro.
Jackson Kyaligonza, a resident of Kiruli in Masindi notes that, if no stringent and punitive action is taken against those extorting money from the PDM beneficiaries, the motive for which the program was initiated will lose meaning.
Several implementers of the PDM including parish chiefs and local council one chairpersons in the Bunyoro sub-region have been accused of gross extortion in the implementation of the program, most of whom have been arrested.
In May 2024, two individuals were arrested in Masindi District for allegedly extorting money from PDM beneficiaries.
John Ayesiga, the Chairperson of Tukole Hamu PDM Group in Muramura Village, and Edward Irumba, the LC1 Chairperson for Muramura Village, were accused of extorting UGX 200,000 from each PDM beneficiary in the area.
In July 2024, three officials from Kikuube District Local Government were also arrested for extorting money from individuals seeking to benefit from the PDM.
The arrested officials were Godfrey Katungi, the Parish Chief for Igwanjura in Kabwoya Sub-County; Lawrence Baguma, the Parish Chief for Igwanjura, and Charles Kusemererwa, a community facilitator under the Development Response to Displacement Impacts Project (DR DIP) in Kabwoya Sub-County.
President Museveni launched the Parish Development Model to enhance job creation and address unemployment through various pillars such as financial inclusion, infrastructure development, and agricultural value chain enhancement.
The PDM program is designed to provide low-cost loans to beneficiaries for sustainable income-generating investments within their communities-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
