Museveni launches pay for war claimants in Acholi, Teso, Lango
A cultural leader waves to people during the launch of the compensation payments for people who lost livestock and property in Acholi, Lango, and Teso sub-regions in Soroti District at the weekend. PHOTO / PPU
What you need to know:
- The President also lauded Gen Salim Saleh, the Operation Wealth Creation boss, who through some network, estimated claimants for the three regions to be at 99,000.
President Museveni has launched compensation payments for people who lost livestock and property in Acholi, Lango, and Teso sub-regions during the 1980s, ending the three-decade wait.
Speaking at Soroti University at the weekend, the President said the cattle were stolen during Milton Obote’s regime.
“He who leaves the bed last must arrange it. So the NRM has to arrange all these beds because it is the last. The others who were in the bed left, so NRM has to settle these cases,” Mr Museveni said.
“At one time, we wanted to handle it as restocking but the problem was, where were the facts? If people were real Christians or Muslims or even good pagans, they would speak the truth. The elders can tell before 1986 who had these cows, but the complication was brought by dishonest people,” he added.
The compensation is for people who lost cattle and property between 1986 and 2003.
The President also lauded Gen Salim Saleh, the Operation Wealth Creation boss, who through some network, estimated claimants for the three regions to be at 99,000.
“So I said we can start with that but in phased financial years. Since it is a big job, we may not do it in one financial year, remember we are not only dealing with compensation, we have also to deal with soldiers of compensation, world war soldiers, and UNLA (Uganda National Liberation Front). When we started, the figure was Shs1.5 trillion,” Mr Museveni added.
The President also wondered why tin numbers were required on the forms of claimants because elderly people in places such as Obalanga in Kapelebyong District, Otuboi (Kalaki) and Ochero (Kaberamaido) do not have them.
Mr Musevei instead advised officials to rely on national identity cards to verify the claimants.
He also advised the beneficiaries to use the funds wisely by investing in commercial agriculture.
“Don’t use the money to get cows and marry more women. You must go for agriculture but also for the pocket, I came here in 1995, I told you all this but people don’t listen to the message,” the President said.
Mr Museveni urged residents to practice semi agricultural farming because land is becoming small, citing Ngora District where the population is overwhelming.
He encouraged people to use the four-acre model that includes using the land for coffee, food, pasture and poultry.
Mr Jackson Kafuuzi, the Deputy Attorney General, whose office is handling the compensation, said the tin numbers were removed on the list of requirements.
He said the district structures were integrated in the exercise to confirm the genuine claimants in the affected subregions.
Mr Kafuuzi also said the bio data cards used are free, adding that upon completion of the verification, the districts were asked to send the data cards to the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs.
He added that the three sub-regions have 25,000 claimants whose particulars have been uploaded on the IT data system as start number for payments.
Mr Kafuuzi said in this financial year, the Ministry of Justice has budgeted Shs50b for the claimants.
