LC5 boss quizzed over Besigye talk
Apr 05, 2010
AMOLATAR district chairman Alfred Adoli was among several residents interrogated by the Police over remarks made by FDC leader Kizza Besigye about the lease of Lake Kyoga.
By Patrick Okino
and Bill Oketch
AMOLATAR district chairman Alfred Adoli was among several residents interrogated by the Police over remarks made by FDC leader Kizza Besigye about the lease of Lake Kyoga.
Last week, President Museveni said Besigye would be questioned by the Police over his remarks that the Government had sold Lake Kyoga to a South African company.
“If he said it, we will have to follow him up and ask him under what contract. The Police will have to ask him,†Museveni told a press conference in Barlege in Otuke district during his recent tour of Lango region.
Adoli recorded a statement on Sunday after the Police interrogated Amolatar FDC boss, Sam Aloka, who was picked up from St Andrew Alwala Church of Uganda where he was attending Easter service. Adoli said he told the Police that he did not hear Besigye say such a thing.
Others interrogated were James Auna, the district secretary for works and technical services, and Florence Ogwal, the LC3 councillor of Abeja parish in Awelo sub-county.
Okello Orech, Willy Pwona, Opio Ole, Akello Betty and Fred Ogwang also made statements.
Florence Ogwal, who raised the Lake Kyoga issue, was arrested last Wednesday and released on Police bond.
“They asked me whether Besigye’s statement about the lake was true,†Aloka said on Monday.
The Police dispatched senior detectives to Amolatar on Friday to investigate the claims. The deputy regional Police boss, Samuel Okot Araa, said the investigations were led by his superior, Alfred Bitwire.
Besigye has said he is not afraid of being arrested because he is “fighting for the rights of the peopleâ€.
He said he told the people of Kyoga that the Government was undertaking a policy of leasing lakes to investors, a move which would deprive fishermen of jobs.
Besigye said in a layman’s language, leasing is the same as selling. He added that if his words offended the President, he should have given his version of the story rather than ask the Police to question him.
Fisheries state minister Fred Mukisa recently said the ministry was drafting a policy to allow districts to lease lakes to investors.
The aim, he explained, was to create a sense of ownership in the use and management of the lakes to increase fish production.
Because the public thinks the lakes belong to no one, the vital water bodies have been degraded and depleted, he noted.
and Bill Oketch
AMOLATAR district chairman Alfred Adoli was among several residents interrogated by the Police over remarks made by FDC leader Kizza Besigye about the lease of Lake Kyoga.
Last week, President Museveni said Besigye would be questioned by the Police over his remarks that the Government had sold Lake Kyoga to a South African company.
“If he said it, we will have to follow him up and ask him under what contract. The Police will have to ask him,†Museveni told a press conference in Barlege in Otuke district during his recent tour of Lango region.
Adoli recorded a statement on Sunday after the Police interrogated Amolatar FDC boss, Sam Aloka, who was picked up from St Andrew Alwala Church of Uganda where he was attending Easter service. Adoli said he told the Police that he did not hear Besigye say such a thing.
Others interrogated were James Auna, the district secretary for works and technical services, and Florence Ogwal, the LC3 councillor of Abeja parish in Awelo sub-county.
Okello Orech, Willy Pwona, Opio Ole, Akello Betty and Fred Ogwang also made statements.
Florence Ogwal, who raised the Lake Kyoga issue, was arrested last Wednesday and released on Police bond.
“They asked me whether Besigye’s statement about the lake was true,†Aloka said on Monday.
The Police dispatched senior detectives to Amolatar on Friday to investigate the claims. The deputy regional Police boss, Samuel Okot Araa, said the investigations were led by his superior, Alfred Bitwire.
Besigye has said he is not afraid of being arrested because he is “fighting for the rights of the peopleâ€.
He said he told the people of Kyoga that the Government was undertaking a policy of leasing lakes to investors, a move which would deprive fishermen of jobs.
Besigye said in a layman’s language, leasing is the same as selling. He added that if his words offended the President, he should have given his version of the story rather than ask the Police to question him.
Fisheries state minister Fred Mukisa recently said the ministry was drafting a policy to allow districts to lease lakes to investors.
The aim, he explained, was to create a sense of ownership in the use and management of the lakes to increase fish production.
Because the public thinks the lakes belong to no one, the vital water bodies have been degraded and depleted, he noted.