By Kaleb Yiiki

Arua

In a joint fact finding visit made by the members of the Public Service Committee to the leaders of Arua City and Arua District, it was revealed that, Ministry of Local Government has allocated in the 2023/2024 financial year one billion shillings for Arua District to relocate its headquarters to the new administrative Site in Odumi.  
 
The Public Service Committee led by its Chair Martin Ojara Mapenduzi the Gulu City’s Bardege Division Member of parliament was on an assignment to establish cardinal issues affecting the operationalization of districts which gave birth to Cities in the whole Country.
 
The core areas this committee was interested in include among others; to establish the principal Challenges in management of Honoraria and exgracia of political Leaders in lower local governments where many local governments have failed or unnecessarily delayed to pay their cell or Village Local Council Chairpersons, Sub county Councilors, how well the Cities and the Mother Districts are faring with their operationalization in terms of Human resource structure, Financing, the question of how Arua District and City are going to share assets and Liabilities.
 
The public accounts Committee chair thus demanded a report from Nicholas Ogwang, the Arua District Chief Administrative Officer, on the status of district relocation plans including proof of Land ownership, Asset Sharing and Current Challenges.
 
In his report broken down into the profile of the District, the administrative structures, the population and relocation status and availability of land and the procedure so far taken place. The CAO says, Arua District is located 508 Kilometers away from Kampala in the North western Region of Uganda and the Population is 81 percent dependent on subsistence agriculture with less than 1 percent of the population engaged in commercial agriculture with mainly the family members constituting the labor force and less than 9% of the population is engaged in petty trade, and cottage (Locally produced handcrafts and textiles) industry employs at least 2% of the population.
 
In administrative structure Ogwang says Arua District has only one constituency at the moment which is the original Vurra County with four Sub counties with 32 Parishes and 264 Villages, one Town Council and one town board. He further says that Arua District has a total Population of 146,494.
 
On land availability the CAO says, the District earmarked 45 Acres of the former County Headquarters land and though there are some encroachers on the Land with issues in the High court in, 24 Acres of land has been secured for the district with land title. The Master plan of the District Land has been developed and this has been approved by the District technical Planning Committee, the District Executive committee (DEC) has considered the physical plan and the committee on natural resource has approved the master plan.


Nicholas Ogwang, the CAO Arua District giving status report to leaders   
 
The CAO said that since January 2023, the district has been enrolling tax payers on the Integrated Revenue Application System and the revenue Collection using the IRAS will be implemented fully this financial year as the district is still enrolling more businesses in the system.  
 
The CAO finally outlined the following bottlenecks of the District in that discriminatory enhancement of salaries which affects the morale of employees and that despite the enhancement of the Scientists where the extension workers fall, there has been no budgetary allocation for the extension officers as a result salaries are being paid to employees who are not working or are disabled to work, a continuous recentralization of services, stalled Agriculture Cluster Development(ACDP) Projects under the Ministry of Agriculture Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF), Lack of ICT Gadgets for data collection on Parish Development Model (PDM)by the Parish Chiefs, overwhelming Number of at least 900 pensioners who retired from  Arua District are still getting pension from the District yet they are now in different Districts and he cited that some of the pensioners from Yumbe, Koboko districts are still coming to get their pensions and process their gratuity from Arua District. “Mr. Chair I therefore urge that Government needs to: procure Gadgets for PDM Data Collection for parish Chiefs, Expedite the release of the relocation funds, avail a budget line for the Agricultural extension service, a review policy on pension funds to reduce the burden on Arua District so that pensioners can be paid from the their own Districts.” He recommends.    
 
The LCV Chair Arua District Alfred Okuonzi rubbished the rumors that they are fighting with the mayor Arua City over relocation of the District Headquarters but stressed the need for completion of stalled Agriculture Cluster Development Projects which Arua district was a beneficiary. He revealed to the committee of public service that the Contractor who was doing Construction works at Adroi Bridge have abandoned the Project because he was not paid even after using his own money and wonders that he does not who is going to be responsible for payment of this contractor. “Centralization of Decentralized Services: The local Revenue collected here by districts is to be sent to Kampala! I Don’t know why, may be it is for the people there to warm themselves against it like warming against fire which later on comes back to us even 100%  and to some extent the giving back of this money is delayed,” he decried.
 
 
 LCV Arua District making his submission to the committee
 
 
Yovan Adriko, the Member of Parliament for Arua District urged the Leaders to work together to develop the District. “After this meeting, if you come with confusion telling the people that it is the Member of Parliament who has done this, my friend you’re looking for problems from me. For a council resolution MPs do not have powers to change.” he warned.
 
Meanwhile, Ojara Mapenduzi, the Chair Public Service Committee of Uganda Advised the City Leaders and the District on Asset Sharing that, the districts should agree on sharing movable assets and yet those immovable ones shall be left for the City. He clarified that Arua District will not demand Arua City for Compensation during their relocation. He however directed the Town Clerk Arua City and the Chief Administrative Officer Arua District to offer technical guidance to the Political Heads on peaceful coexistence of the Two Government Entities, within the period while Arua District completes the Office Block Construction.
 
Mapenduzi continued to say that, if government is going to give money to Arua District to build office block and structures in Odumi, it is being given because the District will have to leave all the assets here in the City. “You can have a property in the city but that should come through a mutual agreement; otherwise, if we are to stick to the guidelines, the district will be told that what cannot be moved remains for the City.”


The District Land Officer explaining the Detailed Arua Physical Plan

COVER PHOTO: Hon. Ojara Mapenduzi holding microphone making opening remarks By Kaleb Yiiki