Shs2.5 trillion war claims still north, Teso’s top issue

Claimants seeking compensation for loss of their cattle and property during the insurgencies in Lango, Teso and Acholi have been promised Shs150b before the end of the 2020/2021 financial year.

President Museveni, who is also the candidate for the National Resistance Movement (NRM) party, made the announcement after elders in Teso asked for his commitment to fulfil the promise he has repeated since 2005.

The claimants from the three regions separately sued government for compensation and courts awarded them over Shs2.5 trillion.

They claim the Shs150b announced by the President is too little to help reconstruct lives of the war victims in the three sub-regions.

“Address expeditiously, the compensation of the people of Teso for cattle, property and lives lost during the insurgency and cattle rustling as per your presidential pledge and directive in 2011, supported by court consent judgement of November 4, 2014, and followed up by verification of claims by the government verification team in 2015,” the elders told Mr Museveni in a memorandum read to him at Soroti University on November 19.

 They also gave  the President  a condition that to get the region’s support in the 2021 elections, he must include their compensation in the NRM manifesto.

In response, Mr Museveni, now seeking re-election to take his reign to 40 years, said the compensation would go to the three regions that suffered the insurgencies between 1986 and 2006.

In Teso, the claimants want reparation for cattle lost to Karimojong rustlers during Uganda People’s Army rebellion led by Peter Otai from 1987 to 1992 and Joseph Kony’s Lord’s Resistance Army insurgency in 2003.

Acholi and Lango were the epicentres of the LRA insurgency from 1987 to 2006 when the rebels fled to DR Congo. People lost property and want compensation. Lawyers and activists who have been pushing for compensation of more than 100,000 claimants in the three sub-regions, however, say the money is little and will not serve the purpose.

“We welcome the President’s promise but it’s a drop in the ocean,” Mr Makmot Kibwanga, the lawyer representing Lango claimants, said.

Mr Kibwanga said there are 59,745 claimants demanding Shs1.7 trillion after court awarded them the money in 2014.

“There is also 25 per cent interest per year for six years. That means the interest is even bigger than the compensation awarded by the court. We are not begging, we are demanding,” Mr Kibwanga said.

He said from the verification exercise done by government in 2014, more than one million cattle were lost in Lango between 1987 and 2007.  For the Teso region, Kapelebyong MP and former Amuria District chairperson,  Julius Ocen,  says  four groups are separately seeking compensation.

Mr Ocen leads one group seeking  more than Shs500b for the cattle lost to Karimojong rustlers and in the insurgencies in 1987 and 2003.

“We have been pushing for this compensation for 18 to 20 years and about 1,750 claimants have so far died,” he said.

Early this year, the High Court in Soroti started processing letters of administration for the families whose original claimants died and the process is ongoing.

Mr Ocen said he has been pushing for compensation of 20,500 claimants for 20 years but the war affected the whole sub-region of about one million people.

Another group led by Kasilo MP Elijah Okupa seeks over Shs65b compensation and the other two groups are led by elders who also are separately pursuing compensation.

However, Mr Ocen claimed there are ‘brokers’ who want to hijack the compensation process.

“There are many fraudsters in government who want to benefit. That’s why the process has delayed because of competing interests,” he said.

The elders in Teso say in 2016 government promised compensation and the region voted President Museveni because of that commitment but no payment has ever been delivered.

Progress

Government has taken some steps towards fulfilling the compensation although nothing has materialised.

  In 2013, the government promised to table a Bill seeking to secure funds for compensation of Teso claimants in vain.

Teso is also demanding revival of the animal breeding centre in Soroti that was closed and moved to Tororo before being relocated to Lango.

The residents say after cattle compensation, the breeding centre will help in the restocking programme.

They are also asking for de-silting and expansion of 139 valley dams in order to promote rain water harvesting, combat grazing livestock in waterlogged areas and encourage fish farming.

In Acholi which was worst hit by the LRA insurgency among the three sub-regions, there are more than 23,000 claimants seeking Shs285b reparations.

Mr Norbert Adere, an activist who has been pushing for compensation told Daily Monitor they were paid Shs7.1b in 2017 but are still demanding Shs277b.

“The President’s promise is a good gesture, we are waiting for implementation,” Mr Adere said.