COUNCIL OF FURNITURE BLESSES ARUA DISTRICT’S 33 BILLION BUDGET DRAFT

Arua district council hall almost empty. Photo by Morish Dramadri.

By Morish Dramadri

Arua city

Empty chairs and tables on Friday March 28, 2025 graced Arua district council sitting that was planned to draft the council budget for the financial year 2025/26 as councilors boycotted the sitting.

The sitting that was set to commenced at 9am only show 5 councilors including the speaker and her deputy, leader of government business and two other members of the district executive committee present by 10:40am with only two councilors absent with apology.

This prompted the council speaker, Rt. Hon. Lawino Single Buatre to first adjourn the sitting for 15 minutes, and later to 8 April, as the council failed to meet the 50% quorum as mandated by law.

“This is not something easy we are supposed to here laying the budget but now the quorum is not there and by procedure we are not allowed to contact any business, when you look at the house the house is empty, what does this mean? This is also a sign that there is a problem between the honorable members and the technical team,” Rt. Hon. Lawino disclosed.

Arua district council had planned to lay a budget draft of over 33 billion shillings but by the time of this adjournment Honorable councilor had not yet received the copy of the budget Draft.

Hon. Ronald Bilea the vice chair and leader of government business in the council accused the secretary for finance planning and Administration Hon. E’yokia Hope for demobilizing the councilors to boycott the sitting.

“This very morning I received a call from one of the honorable council members that they have been demobilized by the responsible minister who is supposed to lay this budget before the council not to come for the council because the issues of the study visit for the honorable councilors has not been handled, it was only the three secretaries who were present, the secretary finance was not present,” Hon. Bilea unearthed.

But Hon. E’yokia Hope the secretary finance planning and administration refuted the accusation. “It is not my role to mobilize councilors to sit for council my role as secretary finance is to make sure the budget is prepared an it is laid and it follows the normal proceedings so that the budget is laid and approved, I have done my part, that is purely a rumor and I treat it as cheap political method of trying to put someone down, if I was personally involved in this, I should not have been here,” Hon. E’yokia denied.

According to the council procedure, the council can only conduct business when 50% of the quorum is realized.