President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has ordered a special probe into the alleged mismanagement of the Parish Development Model (PDM) in the Sebei sub region.
On Thursday, while addressing a public rally at Binyiny SS grounds in Kween district, President Museveni, using his usual approach of engaging the community, paraded over 200 locals who claimed to have received less than nine hundred thousand shillings.
“Is there anyone here who received less than nine hundred thousand shillings? Go on the microphone and tell me here, I am going to arrest them immediately.” The president said, in a swift response, several locals raised their hands in the air, prompting the president to parade them in front and quickly direct his officers to document the locals for further processing.
“Get their details, the name and the telephone numbers; this is a criminal case for CID to management,” while wearing a seemingly tougher mood, the President ordered his officers.
Before summoning the locals in front, one PDM beneficiary had shocked the President when she confessed how she had only received five hundred thousand shillings instead of the Shs1 million.
Earlier on, President Museveni had stressed the need for every household to join the money economy, which is massively being supported by the government through the PDM program.
“People of Sebei, my purpose of coming here is to check on you. We are building the roads, but we need to join the money economy. When I go for public meetings or leaders meetings, people are always talking about development that has been here for the last 60 years, but if you go along the tarmac road, even today, you will find poor people near the tarmac road,” Museveni said.
Museveni said, “This is where NRM came in to promote wealth for every household. So there is development (roads) for everybody, but poverty is yours. I don’t share your poverty; poverty is private and personal. That’s why we say, you people don’t be diverted to look at something and forget something else; you must see clearly and get into money-making through model farming.”
According to President Museveni, in 2013, only 32% of the people in Uganda were in the money economy, a move that prompted a decision to engage soldiers to manage Operations Wealth Creation, OWC.
Rev. Bishop Masaba Kipto of Sebei Diocese thanked President Museveni for mobilizing Ugandans to create wealth.
“Uganda is blessed to have a president like you who has a heart for his people. You want everybody to be rich, to have peace, and to stay happy, and may God continue using you to develop this country. If I were God, I would reverse your age; we still need you,” said Bishop Kipto.
President Museveni kicked off the PDM assessment tour of the Sebei sub region on Tuesday, December 10th, where he visited three model farmers who had been supported by the government.
Next week, President Museveni will be in the Bugisu sub region (Elgon) to assess the implementation of PDM and other wealth creation programs.
