President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni yesterday continued with his second sub-region tour to the West Nile after the Acholi sub-region.
The resourceful sub-regional tours are centered on the theme of “securing your future through wealth creation”. According to UBOS statistics, some parts of the country are still captivated by poverty at a rate of 68%.
It is a culture of the President to follow up on the implementation of his social contract in the NRM manifesto 2021-26 and is reawakening the leadership of the area in the different sub-regions and the peasants about their role in fighting poverty through taking advantage of the government strategic vehicle of the Parish Development Model as per the National Development Plan III.
The meetings at Arua city golf course started early with presentations from the different MDAs about their plans and achievements towards ensuring better livelihood for the people of the West Nile sub-region.
Much as the facilitators explained particularly those from the Ministry of Energy, minerals, and natural resources, the locals were non aligning with their failed promises to make West Nile connected to the National grid for electricity power. Last year around September, the Ministry of Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources set a deadline for powering the area which later shifted to March this year but still non achieved which angered the peasants and thus branded NRM as a party of empty promises.
The President seems to have been technologically following up the entire proceedings and on his turn to address the masses, he called on the minister to explain ” How many more hours for the darkness to end in West Nile”. The Minister Hon. Ruth Nankabirwa Ssentamu using strong technical language “Nebbi sub-station is 85% complete, will get power from Gulu and Gulu from Kole district” fused the peasants which made the President use a simpler explanation and tasked the Minister to ensure that West Nile is powered without fail.
On the PDM, the President also called Hon. Galabuzi Ssozi the National Coordinator to explain how the SACCO is formed and all the requirements for people to benefit.
The President assured the masses “We have enough electricity but the problem is distribution”. The President’s engagements are an expansion of his Musevenomics concept about how Uganda can speedy economic growth and development through taking advantage of value addition on especially the 14 production lines. He said with confidence about the achievement of NRM to have transformed the economy from a GDP of USD 1.5 billion to USD 49.3 billion by June 2023.
Speaking on phone, the ONC Deputy Public Relations Officer Dr. Brenda Tibamwenda said that the President is a kind of a leader who believes in teaching the people to bring about accountability.
“He never gets tired to explain and practically taking lead in ensuring that the main objective of fulfilling the social contract of 5 promises in the NRM manifesto is achieved. It is public evidence now about how the Bazzukulu are so hopeful to have jobs through SMEs and established industries in the sub-region, access finances through PDM, Emyooga and other opportunities and this is to be achieved once the sub-region is connected to electricity on completion of Muni substation in Arua City and Nyagak 1 and Nyagak II in Nebbi and Zombo districts” Tibamwenda added.
Speaking to 25 years old Racheal Atek a saloon owner “If we have a stable power supply, our businesses can easily expand in production which creates increased income and jobs for the youth. Why would we import goods from Kampala or Gulu?”
Minister Hon. Ruth Nankabirwa explained “Only 11 MW are required but on completion, it will be 200 MW” This is for the Muni Sub-station in addition to Nyagak 1 in Nebbi to produce 3.5 MW and Nyagak II in Zombo districts
The President promised to have a detailed explanation regarding how to do away with darkness in West Nile in the next engagement.
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