By KT Reporter
Sharon Laker Balmoyi, the Gulu District Woman Member of Parliament, has denied accusations that she diverted a tractor donated by the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industries, and Fisheries (MAAIF) for personal use. The tractor was intended to support local farmers and boost commercial agriculture in the district.
The issue was discussed during a full council meeting last week, where the council approved a Shs 30.7 billion budget under the theme “Full Monetization of Gulu District’s Economy through Commercial Agriculture, Industrialization, Expanding Services, Digital Transformation, and Market Access.” During the meeting, Phoebe Ayoo, the Gulu District Speaker, urged the Resident District Commissioner’s office to address the matter urgently, as it was causing unrest in the affected community of Owalo Sub County, where the tractor was originally donated.
“Please carry out investigations into this matter and bring it to a logical conclusion. People want to know what happened to the tractor,” said Speaker Ayoo. In response, John Bosco Tumwesigye, the Gulu Resident District Commissioner, confirmed that the issue had already reached his office and was being investigated.
“It’s true. This matter came to our office. I invited the district security committee. The Member of Parliament told us she requested the tractor from the Ministry of Agriculture. We then decided to write to the Minister of Agriculture, and the minister promised to send a team to handle the matter,” said Tumwesigye.
When contacted by Uganda Radio Network for comment, Balmoyi explained that she had lobbied for the tractor from MAAIF. “I lobbied for the tractor as a leader. I wrote to the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industries, and Fisheries requesting tractors for several groups. Honorable Frank Tumwebaze, the minister, told me they could only give one tractor. I submitted the name of the New Owalo farm, of which I am a member, and received the tractor. I launched it and informed everyone that the tractor was not only for that group but for the entire Gulu district,” said Balmoyi.
Farmers were expected to pay 70,000 shillings for fueling the tractor to plough each acre of land, a rate cheaper than the market rate of 100,000 to 120,000 shillings. However, Balmoyi claimed that the tractor’s operations were abused by the leadership of the New Owalo farm, who collected money from farmers but failed to plough their gardens. This prompted her to take direct control over the tractor’s management.
Balmoyi continued, “We used to park the tractor at Awach Health Center IV, but they would steal the tractor at night and plough people’s gardens. On one occasion, I drove there and told them we needed to park the tractor properly because they were tarnishing my name by collecting money from disadvantaged farmers who really struggle to raise it.” Despite the availability of the tractor, many small-scale farmers in Gulu still rely on hand hoes to till their land due to the high cost of hiring tractors-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
