1,000 iron-sheets rust in Gulu Prisons stores
May 19, 2008
FOR 14 years, over 1,000 iron sheets given to the UPDF veterans in Gulu and Amuru districts have been lying idle in the prisons stores.
By Chris Ocowun
FOR 14 years, over 1,000 iron sheets given to the UPDF veterans in Gulu and Amuru districts have been lying idle in the prisons stores.
The chairman of Gulu-Amuru veterans’ association, Lt. Walter Ocibo, said on Thursday that the Uganda Veteran Assistance Board gave them 1099 iron sheets to build a market in 1994.
He said President Yoweri Museveni promised them sh124m on February 16, 2001 when he laid the foundation stone for the market in Gulu town.
“The iron sheets have rusted from the Gulu prisons store,†Ocibo lamented. The commercial project was meant to enable the veterans generate income to earn a living after being retired.
He said when the iron sheets were given to them, the veterans were not as many as they are today.
There are now more than 2,500 veterans in Gulu and Amuru districts, who need help from the government, Ocibo pointed out.
He added that the veterans had been displaced from their homes like the rest of the population and needed resettlement packages form the Government.
The special presidential adviser for the north, Richard Todwong, said when the president visited Gulu recently, he reminded him about his pledge to the veterans.
“I am sure he will fulfill it soon,†he added. But he said he was not aware of the iron sheets.
FOR 14 years, over 1,000 iron sheets given to the UPDF veterans in Gulu and Amuru districts have been lying idle in the prisons stores.
The chairman of Gulu-Amuru veterans’ association, Lt. Walter Ocibo, said on Thursday that the Uganda Veteran Assistance Board gave them 1099 iron sheets to build a market in 1994.
He said President Yoweri Museveni promised them sh124m on February 16, 2001 when he laid the foundation stone for the market in Gulu town.
“The iron sheets have rusted from the Gulu prisons store,†Ocibo lamented. The commercial project was meant to enable the veterans generate income to earn a living after being retired.
He said when the iron sheets were given to them, the veterans were not as many as they are today.
There are now more than 2,500 veterans in Gulu and Amuru districts, who need help from the government, Ocibo pointed out.
He added that the veterans had been displaced from their homes like the rest of the population and needed resettlement packages form the Government.
The special presidential adviser for the north, Richard Todwong, said when the president visited Gulu recently, he reminded him about his pledge to the veterans.
“I am sure he will fulfill it soon,†he added. But he said he was not aware of the iron sheets.