

22 July 2024, 10:48
By Lakomekec Kinyera
Pader town council urban Chairperson, Mr. Fearless Kilama Wodacholi, has raised serious allegations against district leaders, accusing them of misappropriating Parish Development Model (PDM) operations funds.
In a letter dated July 8 2024, Wodacholi claimed that the quarterly releases of UGX 250,000 to each parish in Pader have not been used as intended.
The letter, addressed to the Ministry of Local Government and received on July 9 2024, was also copied to several high-ranking officials and offices.
Mr. Festo Okidi, the Pader district PDM focal person, refuted the claims. “These allegations are baseless and an attempt to tarnish the district technical team’s image,” he stated. Okidi attributed the delay in fund release to sub-county accountants.
Mr. Brilliant Tito Okello, the Pajule Urban Chairperson III, confirmed that PDM operational funds for three quarters are present in their account but questioned the audit cost derived from the PDM funds. “We will thoroughly investigate this matter,” Okello vowed.
According to Wodacholi, the funds were released on July 12 2024, four days after he wrote the letter pressuring the district leaders. He noted, “Shs 750,000 were released instead of Shs 1 million, which is less by Shs 250,000, an amount the PDM focal person says is for audit.”
The PDM, launched on February 26 2022, in the eastern district of Kibuku, aims to transform subsistence households into a money economy, lifting 17.5 million Ugandans out of poverty.