Kasese to be split into four different districts

President Museveni has agreed to a proposal of splitting Kasese into four districts.

The proposal which was tabled in a meeting with the Kasese District National Resistance Movement (NRM) caucus, the NRM Executive Committee together with selected opinion leaders at Statehouse Entebbe on Wednesday seeks to have four districts of Bwera, Hima, Kasese and Katwe.

The parties agreed that the move is for the benefit of all as it would address the issue of ethnic minorities, improve on service delivery and security and also improve on the supervision and monitoring of the Operation Wealth Creation project.

“Once my people are together, I don’t have a problem. I agree with the split of Kasese district because the district, with over a million people, cannot provide everyone with service delivery, decentralization removes friction based on sectarianism,” Mr Museveni said.

Mr Museveni reiterated that they should handle the issues of the district amicably such that Kasese becomes a district of growth like Kalangala that was split from Masaka, and is now doing well because of the palm oil production and solar power generation projects.

On October 26, 2010, the members of the district council overwhelmingly approved a motion moved by then district chairman, the Rev Can. Julius Kithaghenda to split Kasese and create Bwera and Rwenzori districts.

A week later, Rev. Kithaghenda wrote to the Ministry of Local Government expressing the decision of council to have the district split on grounds of improving service delivery and creation of jobs. However, residents led by Mr Lucas Buhaka and Mr Milton Bwambale Bikopo dragged the council to court arguing that the chairman (Rev Rev Kithaghenda) had no locus to move any motion since he is not a counselor.

In an October 2, 2012 letter, Omusinga Charles Wesley Mumbere, the King of Rwenzururu Kingdom, wrote to the Minister for Local Government endorsing the proposal to split Kasese District into three districts.

However, Mumbere in July this year lashed out at people who agitated for the split of Kasese District into three as idlers who do not want peace in the area.

Speaking at Peas Secondary School in Buhuhira Sub-county, Mumbere argued that the split would affect the kingdom at her subjects
In 2014, a parliamentary committee recommended the carving-out of five new districts from Wakiso, Kibaale, Kabale, Arua and Kasese.
However, a minority report opposed the recommendation arguing that struggling districts that are poorly facilitated should be fully equipped and an assessment conducted with the view of merging the less viable and fully facilitating those in place.

In December last year, while campaigning in Manafwa District, Museveni promised that his government will lift the moratorium on the creation of new districts, pledging that there is a “long list” of districts to be created in 2017.

In 2014 a parliamentary committee report was presented with recommendations, that Cabinet should create more districts after the population census of 2014, starting with the large districts of Kasese, Kibaale, Wakiso, Arua and Kabale, which was approved by Parliament.