The Office of Luwero Resident District Commissioner and Police have recovered 40 million shillings stolen from the Parish Development Model Programme.
The stolen money was recovered from Parish Chiefs and PDM Sacco chairpersons.The office of RDC recovered eight million shillings from the chairperson of Kabunyata PDM SACCO and eight million shillings from the chairperson of Kyetume PDM SACCO.
Other money was recovered from other parish chiefs of Ndejje and Zirobwe town council.
Speaking at the meeting organized by the State House to evaluate PDM in Luwero district, Richard Bwabye the Luwero Resident District Commissioner explained that the PDM SACCO Chairpersons and parish chiefs had stolen the money from beneficiaries by extending less funds than the authorized one million shillings. Others asked for bribes to approve the loans.
Bwabye adds that on a tip-off, he ordered the Police to arrest the chiefs and SACCO chairpersons who refunded the money to the beneficiaries.
Bwabye added that currently, the Police are hunting for Noah Ssemayobe the District Commercial Officer and others to refund 61 million shillings stolen by deleting approved beneficiaries and replacing them with their fake people to embezzle the funds.
Gaddafi Nasur the Chairperson of the National Resistance Movement Youths League commended the district for acting tough on corrupt PDM SACCO Chairpersons saying this would serve as an example to others who may also want to steal the funds.
Gaddafi also appealed to beneficiaries to always report any person who asks for bribes to approve loans so that action is taken.
Dr Andrew Makubuya, the Luwero District PDM Coordinator says that despite the few cases of corruption, the programme has been largely successful and extended loans to 10,647 beneficiaries to boast their enterprises.
Maukubuya said that todate Luwero has received 16 billion shillings and disbursed to 101 PDM Saccos spread across the district.
Makubuya added the district has also enrolled 86,754 out of 105,594 households in the district on the Parish Development Based Management Information System.
Moses Byaruhanga the Senior Presidential Advisor on Political Affairs said that President Yoweri Museveni has created a special team within the State House to evaluate the performance of PDM and address challenges to ensure that it fulfils his objective to transform the people.
Byaruhanga said that from the engagements with beneficiaries and leaders in Luwero, the programme has been largely successful after the office of RDC took tough action against corrupt PDM SACCO leaders.
Byaruhanga added that they intend to open up a toll-free line in the state house where people can call and report people who extort or embezzle money from the PDM programme so that they can apprehend them.
President Yoweri Museveni launched the Parish Development Model in 2022, a program meant to eradicate poverty through execution of development activities at the parishes.
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