“KISANJA NO MORE SLEEP” YUMBE NRM ADMINISTRATOR FLEES SHS345M PROBE

(L-R) NRM Director for finance and administration Hajjat Medina Naham Ojale, Counsel Enoch Barata and Commissioner Zaitun Driwaru during the harmonization at Yumbe on Sunday, photo by Morish Dramadri.

By Morish Dramadri

Arua city

The Yumbe District National Resistance Movement (NRM) Party Administrator, Rasul Adiga, is reportedly on the run after being released on police bond over allegations of mismanaging funds earmarked for grassroots mobilization activities ahead of the recent Local Council One (LC I) and Women’s Council elections.

Adiga and his co-accused, Majid Haruna Aniku, the Yumbe District NRM Chairperson, were arrested by police on July 28, 2026, over the alleged misuse of Shs345 million that had been allocated to facilitate party mobilization activities, Local Council programs, Women’s Council engagements, and community barazas across Yumbe District’s 26 sub-counties.

The two were later released on police bond pending further investigations. However, during a harmonization meeting convened by the NRM Secretariat on Sunday to address the matter, Adiga was notably absent and failed to account for the allegations against him, raising further concerns among party officials.

Majid Haruna Aniku, (in dark blue coat) the embattled Yumbe District NRM Chairperson appearing before officials from NRM secretariat, photo by Morish Dramadri

Speaking during the meeting, Aniku admitted receiving the funds but attributed the emerging accountability questions to inconsistencies and ambiguities in the implementation guidelines issued by the party headquarters.

According to him, the funding circular indicated a total allocation of Shs218 million, yet the district reportedly received Shs345 million.

“The circular does not indicate the proper figure of the money. The amount reflected in the circular is Shs218 million, but we received Shs345 million. The money I signed for was only meant for the District Executive Committee (DEC),” Aniku explained.

His explanation, however, was challenged by several district party leaders who argued that key stakeholders were neither informed about the full amount neither released nor involved in the management of the funds.

Yumbe NRM officials, raising concerns during the harmonization meeting on Sunday, Photo by Morish Dramadri

Mahad Azabo, the Yumbe District NRM Youth League Chairperson, accused the district leadership of withholding critical information regarding the funds from members of the District Executive Committee.

“The whole amount that was given to Yumbe District to carry out this exercise was never mentioned in the DEC. I personally did not know that the money was Shs345 million because the circular was not shared with us,” Azabo alleged.

The NRM Secretariat has since intensified scrutiny of the matter, with party officials indicating that the amount under investigation could exceed the initially reported figure.

Counsel Barata Enoch, the NRM Director of Legal Affairs, revealed that investigators are still tracing additional funds whose accountability remains unclear.

“We have two or three categories of money that are still outstanding. The total amount of money involved is still short by a certain figure, and we need to establish where that money is,” Barata said.

As investigations continue, the NRM Director of Finance and Administration, Hajjat Medina Naham Ojale, directed members of the District Executive Committee, particularly the signatories to the accounts in question, to temporarily step aside to allow an independent investigation by police.

“The DEC, especially the signatories, should step aside to pave the way for police to conduct an independent investigation,” Medina directed.

The unfolding controversy in Yumbe adds to a growing list of accountability-related investigations involving both public institutions and political organizations across Uganda. Police investigations are ongoing, and no formal charges have yet been announced against the suspects.