I’ve lost weight because of unending challenges in Karamoja- Minister Kitutu

The minister for Karamoja affairs, Ms Mary Goretti Kitutu has said officials in her ministry are overwhelmed by the challenges in Karamoja, including unending insecurity cases across the sub region.

Ms Kitutu said she had lost weight because of the pressure from her colleagues in other ministries, some of whom seem to think her ministry is not performing.

"We are getting too much pressure. Our colleagues are firing at us (ministers in charge of the sub region) all the time because the current situation in Karamoja is making us to be seen as not performing," Ms Kitutu said on Thursday while opening a one-day regional security meeting to address the current situation of Karamoja.

During the meeting that was held at the Office of the Prime Minister’s compound in Moroto District, Ms Kitutu said there are many issues in the region the ministers in charge alone cannot solve.

According to her, the “meagre resources” allocated to her ministry cannot solve all the problems in the area.

Her ministry has reportedly been getting Shs10 billion annually (from the national budget), which money, she said was not enough to help address the situation.

"This has been our challenge to even stay in Karamoja yet we are supposed to be residents in Karamoja,"said Kitutu who was flanked by Agnes Nandutu, the minister of State for Karamoja affairs and Mr Vincent Ssempijja, the Minister of Defense and Veteran Affairs.

She however, said she was hopeful that the Shs39 billion they requested will help support the disarmament exercise in the sub region that has in the past years been rocked with cattle rustling despite several government interventions to pacify it.

Mr Ssempijja said: "Karamoja is part of Uganda if the insecurity is not well dealt with in the region, it will split to the entire country."

Accordimg to him, it’s unfortunate that some people had made it a habit to kill others yet there’s no war in Karamoja.

In July 2021, a joint force of police and the army relaunched the third phase of disarmament exercise and so far, a total 155 guns and 1,511 rounds of ammunitions were recovered.

However, the situation is yet to improve. At least three to four people are killed by suspected rustlers in the region every day.