MP Adriko Mourns Murdered DHO, Warns Locals Against Taking Law Into Their Hands

ARUA. Yovan Adriko, the Vurra County Member of Parliament (MP) has joined the leaders of Arua district in mourning Dr. Paul Bishop Drileba, the slayed Acting Arua District Health Officer (DHO).

Dr. Drileba was on Saturday, November 23, 2024, murdered by an angry mob in Oyeku village, Ajia sub-county in Arua district where he had gone with his lawyer, surveyor and other workers to start opening the boundary of the 80-acre piece of land he earlier bought in the area.  

But speaking to journalists in Arua city on Monday, November 25, 2024, Adriko condemned the barbaric manner in which Dr. Drileba was murdered and warned locals against taking the law into their hands.

“As the area MP, I feel very bad about the brutal murder of Dr. Drileba. I would like to take this opportunity to convey my sincere condolences to his bereaved family. It is unfortunate that this has happened but we are going to sit down with the security team and look for those individuals who killed Dr. Drileba,” Adriko promised.

Adriko said this is not the first time he has seen innocent people dying in such brutal manner because of land conflict which has become so rampant in the West Nile sub-region and particularly in Vurra Constituency.

“Because God loves us so much, he gave us very fertile land and many people are coming to Vurra because it is allowed in the Constitution of Uganda for any Ugandan to buy land and settle in any part of this country. That is why whether you are from Terego, Maracha, Ayivu or a Munyankole, you are free to come to Vurra because it is allowed in the Constitution,” Adriko explained.

“But I’m not happy to see people killing each other, and more so, I have seen this problem is attributed to land sale. There are some people who are selling one plot of land to more than two people which is not good. As a seller we expect you to be transparent because we don’t expect you to pick somebody’s money and later turn around to resell the land to another person to cause problems,” Adriko remarked.

He said as leaders from Vurra, they are not happy about what happened, promising that they are going to join hands with security to look for those culprits who killed their staff and bring them to book.

He further warned the locals against taking the law into their hands, saying where there is a misunderstanding, let the parties seek for legal redress other than killing each other.

In the same veil, Adriko extended condolence to the family of Medard Asenga Autsai, a renowned politician in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) who passed on over the weekend.

Adriko urged Congolese, especially from the Eastern part of DRC, to emulate the spirit of unity Autsai fostered between Ugandans and Congolese across the border.

Adriko said he has been reliably informed that Autsai’s body will spend ten days in Kinshasa before being Airlifted to Aru for burial.

Who is Autsai

Médard Autsai Asenga was born in 1942 to a modest Christian family in Aru, Ituri Province as the mother’s only son. He was raised from Aru and went to school within and outside the country before joining politics to serve his government in different capacities.

Autsai later served as the Governor of Orientale Province from 24 February 2007 to 5 March 2012. On 30 April 2010 he was made Grand Commander of the National Order of the Leopard, the highest civilian decoration in the country.

He then died as the Senator of the Orientale Province in the Eastern DR Congo to the House of Senators in Kinshasa.