Arua leaders grill UNRA officials

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Reason. Unra officials claim some residents were paid, a claim the leaders deny.
Mr Kamilo Sabo, the district secretary for finance and planning wondered why it had taken UNRA more than five years to complete the payments yet other affected persons in other regions that came on board much later have already been compensated.

ARUA. Arua District leaders at the weekend put to task officials of Uganda National Roads Authority (Unra) to explain why it has taken them more than five years to compensate land owners who were affected during the 92-km Vurra-Arua-Koboko-Oraba road construction.
The Unra officials led by senior land acquisition officer Jaqueline Lamunu, were in the district to brief the district leaders about the progress of the compensation of the project-affected persons.
Mr Kamilo Sabo, the district secretary for finance and planning wondered why it had taken UNRA more than five years to complete the payments yet other affected persons in other regions that came on board much later have already been compensated.
“I think you are exploiting our generosity in this region. I even do not understand why you have called us here when there is no money. People are anxiously waiting for the news of when you are going to pay them but here you are saying that there is no money. Why is there no money up to now?” Mr Sabo asked.
Mr Levi Dema, the Aroi Sub-county chairman cited foul play by UNRA officials who said some of the affected people were paid yet they did not receive any payment.
“I tried following up this matter of compensation in vain now and the Unra officials here only tell me that people have been paid. Yet if you ask the affected persons, no payment has been made. A speedy The process should be sped up to ensured that they are paid,” he said.
The road construction works of the 92-km road was started in 2012 and completed in 2015 though it has not officially been handed over to Unra by the contractor. Ms Lamunu said of the 3,935 affected persons, only 785 people from Arua, Maracha and Koboko districts have not been paid.
But the Unra official said the affected persons had not been paid because the agency had no money.
“Payments could not be made because of lack of funds but right now we are in the process of requesting for more funds and we expect to pay them next financial year,” she said.
China Chongqing International Construction Corporation (CICO) tarmacked the Shs 132 billion Vurra-Arua-Koboko-Oraba road.