Major Marth Asiimwe speaking to Bunyangabu District leaders. She was concerned that the district had not received an ambulance from Central government yet others received.

On Friday, a team from State House visited Bunyangabu and was impressed by the pace of progress and service delivery in the seven-year-old district.

The team was led by Dr. Sr. Mary Grace Akirror, a commissioner in the Office of the President, accompanied by Major Martha Asiimwe, who also works in the same office. The two had come to assess the level of service delivery and the impact of government wealth-creation programmes in the area.

In a meeting that was held at the Council Hall, they met district leaders who included the State Minister for Gender and Culture, Hon Peace Mutuuzo; the LCV Chairperson, Mr James Ategeka Mugarama; the CAO, Mr Nsubuga Isa Hood; the RDC, Mr Joshua Masereka; the Speaker, Hon Kato Hussein and all heads of department. Also in attendance were the DPC, SSP Steven Twinomugisha; the DISO, Mr Karamira Nobert; Sub County chairpersons and NRM leaders.

Some of the district leaders who attended the meeting. 

In her remarks, Sr Akirror appreciated the district for the good performance and putting resources to the right use, saying the district was performing better than the others she had visited in the region.

Sr Akirror noted that despite existing for only a few years, she had gotten information that the leaders were working so hard and ensuring that the communities were getting the services they needed. She, however, challenged them to improve on information sharing to bridge the information gap.

For her part, Minister Mutuuzo, who doubles as the Bunyangabu Woman Member of Parliament, appreciated the support the district is getting from the central government. She, however, raised concern over the delayed delivery of the district ambulance, which she said was hampering service delivery in the health sector.

The Minister also noted that she had received complaints regarding taxiation and blamed tax bodies for inadequate sensitization of the masses on the matter. She asked the Commissioner to look into the issue and ensure that the levying of taxes is done fairly and appropriately.

Similarly, Hon Mutuuzo reported to the team that the district was not benefiting from Rubona Stock Farm.

“Sometimes we just see lorries carrying the cattle away and people are unaware of what is happening. We kindly need to see the farm benefiting the farmers of Bunyangabu,” she said.

The legislator told the State House team that was in the region for mobilization and Baraza Programmes on service delivery and wealth creation, that the district was understaffed at 63 per cent and required special attention to address the challenge.

The LCV chairperson Mr Mugarama noted that the district is struggling to operate because of limited funds. He said some districts have so many projects and receive more funding than others, and requested the commissioner to ensure that resources are fairly distributed across the country.  He gave an example of transitional funds that the district has never received yet they get budgeted for at the national level.

He also observed a need for a regional workshop for repairing road equipment, saying that the one in Mbarara is too far to meet the needs of Bunyangabu.

After the departmental presentation of reports, the meeting ended with a field visit to some of the government projects being implemented in the district.