Corruption Remains a Big Challenge for Obongi District, Says RDC

OBONGI. Mpimbaza Hashaka, the Obongi Resident District Commissioner (RDC), has come out publicly to state that corruption has remained a big challenge for Obongi district.

Speaking before Aisha Sekindi, the State Minister of Water in the Ministry of Water and Environment (MoWE) during a recent function in Obongi Town Council, Hashaka revealed that when he newly came to the district, even the office of the RDC was part of the corruption.

“When I came here, I promised a fundamental change and the fundamental change has happened. Some of the corrupt people here are now very annoyed with me, and the corrupt are politicians and the technical people,” Hashaka said.

He reported to the Minister that because of his effort, at least four senior technical officers have been arrested and interdicted due to corruption.

“And because of fighting corruption, I’m now under attack. Some technical people and politicians are planning a council meeting that I should be transferred, shame on them! I have been telling them that they are not the ones who brought me to Obongi, I was brought here by the President and the people who voted for the President and God, and those are the three people that are going to be responsible for my leaving Obongi,” Hashaka warned.

The RDC noted that the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) has a lot of support in Obongi but the problem has been corruption.

He cited an example of Gulu University which was given Shs623m to construct 11 fishponds in Obongi district but not even one was constructed as the money got swindled.

“There are many more scandals we are following up regarding corruption in this district and very soon you are going to see fire again in the fight against corruption in Obongi. So, therefore, people of Obongi, join me in the struggle, let us continue making sure you get what is due for you. As they are planning to go to the council that I should be transferred, for me my power lies in you, the people of Obongi,” Hashaka said.

Hashaka was quickly supported by Hassan Kaps Fungaroo, the former Obongi County MP, who said to him, the coming of the RDC is a blessing for the people of Obongi.

“Those days when I used to speak about corruption, they used to say I’m an opposition as if corruption is good to the NRM. And when a person sent by the President came around and started talking against corruption, I said yes, can you say that this person speaking against corruption is from the FDC, is he against your government?” Fungaroo asked.

“So, the issue of corruption in Obongi is a very serious thing. There are buildings here which are at the verge of collapsing, they have developed serious cracks because of shoddy work due to the poor level of supervision orchestrated by corruption tendencies,” Fungaroo stated.

However, in his remarks during the function, Habib Buga Khemis, the Obongi district chairperson, declined to comment on Haskaka’s outburst over corruption in the district.

But Minister Sekindi said they can’t serve this nation very well when leaders are corrupt.

“It is corruption that is killing this nation. So, I’m just appealing to the leaders of Obongi that instead of sitting in a council meeting to chase away the RDC, why can’t you sit together and forge a way forward on how to eliminate this disease (corruption) in our district,” Sekindi advised.