NEWS- Sironko district has set a two weeks deadline for the disbursement of all Parish Development Model (PDM) money to different beneficiaries.
Ms Ritah Namuwenge, the PDM Consultant who is also the Emyooga’s program coordinator made the directive during a PDM stakeholder’s engagement meeting on Wednesday at Buwalasi Sub-County Headquarter.
Various district leaders have since expressed commitment to beat the deadline.
The district with 224 parishes received Sh22.4 billion for the financial year 2023-2024, but the officials have not disbursed the funds to the beneficiaries. This has sparked concerns among the leaders why the district has failed to disburse the money.
According to the disbursement rate, Sironko stands at 0 percent performance.
Mr Nelson Kirenda, CAO of Sironko told Bugisu intellectual forum, that they will disburse the money in two weeks to all the parishes in the district. He made the remarks during a stakeholders meeting attended by Program Implementers, Emyooga SACCO executive members, and district leaders. Others include Emyooga and PDM officials, Ministry of Finance representatives, at Pato Playground in Buwalasi Sub-county.
The meeting was chaired by Rita Namuwenge, the National coordinator for Emyooga and PDM consultant in charge of Eastern Uganda.
Namuwenge said the aim of the meeting was to find solutions for how the Sh22.4 billion which are still stuck in the bank accounts can go to the people.
“The district leaders have promised us that within two weeks, all the money in the bank account will be disbursed to the people,”she said.
The CAO acknowledged that the district received the funds, but the money is still held in the Post Bank. He blamed the delay to disburse the money on extortion.
“We decided to halt the process and resolve these issues. Now that everything is settled, we have instructed them to take one week to identify the beneficiaries and then start disbursing the funds in the second,” Kirenda revealed.
The State Minister for Karamoja Affairs, Ms Florence Nambozo, urged the PDM implementers to address the issues affecting the program.
“Sironko receives a lot of money from the central government, but there is no impact on the ground. Sometimes we feel ashamed why we remain poor. How can such much money come into the district and people remain the same,”Nambozo said.
She advised her people to be dedicated and committed. The Assistant Resident District Commissioner (ARDC) for Sironko, Allan Wanambwa, appreciated Namuwenge for bringing PDM implementers together in a meeting.
