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KIKUUBE - Cabinet is planning to table a Bill before Parliament seeking the formation of National Service Commission to curb corruption in district service commissions, Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja has said.

Nabbanja says the move is being driven by several outcries from across the country over allegations that members of the district service commissions demand bribes from those applying for jobs in the district.

According to her, parents struggle to educate their children and after, they suffer to get them employment.

She noted some parents are forced to sell off their land to pay for the jobs, an act the premier says is unethical.

Nabbanja says members of district service commissions demand for money at the time when one applies for the job and after they are shortlisted. This money is never recovered in case one fails to get the job.

She noted that as a government, they are concerned with this inhuman act adding that a plan is in the pipeline to change the law and have the National Service Commission, which will be in charge of recruiting district civil servants.

"We are going to table this proposal in Parliament and we have hope that if the district service commission gets disbanded and we get a National Service Commission, people will be applying and get jobs on the melt," she said.      

Nabbanja made the remarks during the belated Kikuube International Women's Day celebrations organised by the district women's council and Woman Member of Parliament Florence Natumanya.

Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja being welcomed at the belated Kikuube International Women's Day celebrations by MP Natumanya. (All Photos by Peter Abaanabasazi)

The function was held in Rwemisanga Primary School in Kyangwali sub-county on Saturday, April 27, 2024, under the theme: Invest in Women: Accelerate progresses. 

Women development

Nabbanja challenged the people of Bunyoro, especially women, to join the war against poverty through engaging in production and value addition.

She advised the Banyoro to embrace a four-acre model of farming, which encourages diversification, with one acre dedicated to coffee cultivation, another to fruit trees, the third to staple crops for household consumption, and the fourth to pasture for livestock.

 Nabbanja noted the Government has initiated several programmes aimed at helping to fight poverty such as the Emyooga project, the Parish Development Model and the Uganda Women Entrepreneurship Programme (UWEP)  adding if farmers embrace such programmes they will be able to implement the four-acre model.

 Natumanya said there was a need to empower women on how to balance business and family.

She noted that as women leaders, they are happy that many women are engaging in different businesses but the issue of balancing business and family is still a challenge.
This, according to Natumanya, sometimes forces men to stop their wives from working and contributes to the increasing domestic violence.

The MP added that despite Kikuube being an oil and gas host district, women have not benefitted from opportunities created by the sector because they are not empowered.
She underscored a need to empower women on issues of standards required for one supply in the oil and gas sector.

According to her, women in the district are in Agricultural production but they can not supply because they have not been trained.

Natumanya noted for one to supply services or products to the sector, they need to have a registered company but that the majority of the women have no company because registration of a company has a lot of bureaucracies and this calls for interventions to prepare the women to benefit from the sector.

Kikuube district chairperson Peter Banura challenged the men to support their women to engage in development activities.

He commended the Government for initiating several programmes targeting to empower women financially but that some women are left out because their husbands are against their involvement.

The event attracted thousands of women and men who enjoyed entertainment from Spice Diana among other local artistes.