Nantaba wants elderly scheme probed

Outgoing Lands state minister Ida Nantaba (in gomesi) celebrates with the newly elected Kayunga speaker Saleh Balinsoni (2nd left) during the swearing in of district leaders on Tuesday. PHOTO BY FRED MUZAALE

Kayunga. Outgoing Lands state minister Ida Nantaba has asked the Inspector General of Government to investigate how the outgoing Kayunga District leadership selected beneficiaries of the Senior Citizens Grant given to elderly persons.
Ms Nantaba, who is also the district Woman MP, claims the 100 elderly persons per sub-county in the district were selected based on sectarian and political grounds.
“It hurts me as a leader to find that more than 900 beneficiaries of the senior citizens’ grant in this district all come from the same area and are from almost one tribe. I ask the IGG to take interest in this matter and probe how these beneficiaries were selected,” Ms Nantaba said on Tuesday.

Take oath
This was during the swearing-in of the district LC5 chairperson, Mr Tom Sserwanga, and his councillors at Ntenjeru District headquarters.
The grant, one of the core components of the Social Assistance Grant for Empowerment, started in 2010 with financing by government and development partners.
Kayunga is among the districts where the programme will be rolled out during this financial year.
However, the Elderly and Disabled Affairs State minister, Mr Sulaiman Madada, dismissed the claims by Ms Nantaba, saying beneficiaries had been selected on merit.
The former district LC5 chairman, Mr Steven Dagada said: “The selection of beneficiaries was based on age, but also on who is in more need for assistance.”