MADI OKOLLO DISTRICT FACES RENEWED PRESSURE OVER POOR SERVICE DELIVERY

Madi Okollo district headquarters.

By Erema George

Arua City

As attention shifts from politics to service delivery following the swearing-in of leaders at both local and national levels, Madi Okollo District is under renewed pressure due to poor service delivery.

The district has long ranked low on service delivery in local government ratings, with the most recent local government management of service delivery national assessment league table ranking it 157th out of 160 assessed local governments, and stakeholders continue to push it to improve services for its residents.

The District’s Chief Administrative Officer, CAO, Nawoya Bruno describes the District as a hard to reach district due to its poor roads, hindering service delivery. He also highlighted lack of proper health facilities, low human resource, improper housing facilities, and poor social services as factors hindering service delivery.

Nawoya Bruno, the CAO of Madi Okollo district (photo by Erema George)

“You are aware that if I want to go for monitoring, I have to close office I am going to Ewanga because I have to pass through Arua, through Terego, go through Yumbe then access Ewanga from the other side of Obongi which is just on the river because here there are swamps and wetlands which cannot allow you to go unless you use water transport, so it remains a challenge.” Nawoya noted in a statement.

Nawoya calls on the newly sworn in district leaders especially councilors not to have too much expectations while assuming their offices, which may limit service delivery.

“The challenge we normally get is that when people come and start fighting because they want bigger privileges than they are given, whereas the local government act clearly says council has to use twenty percent of the local revenue. You find people when they come here, you find councilors struggling to take almost the whole budget and this one makes it hard for us to offer services,” he stated.

But Hon Afidra Ronald Olema, the former Member of Parliament for lower Madi in a separate interview disagrees with the CAO on describing Madi Okollo as a hard reach district noting that, “as Madi Okollo, we are a new district and now that the district is close to the people of Madi Okollo, no longer shall any part of the district be called hard to reach, let us not deny the people of Madi Okollo services that we’ve been called to provide in the next five years further noting that the foundations have been laid, and monies have been allocated in the different sectors such as roads, electricity, water, in agriculture and every other sector hoping the new leadership and the technocrats to take off and fly as well as account back to the people.”

Hon.Afidra Ronald Olema, the former MP for lower Madi Okollo constituency. (PHOTO; Erema)

Hon Afidra implores the technocrats at the district to guide those on the political wing to ensure that corruption is kicked out in order to deliver services to the people.

“From the CAO, the assistant CAO, the parish chiefs and all the technocrats in Madi Okollo district, let us kick away corruption, appropriate the monies rightly, let the council preside over, you should be able to carry these services that the Madi people want,” he advised.

Poor service delivery at lower local governments is primarily driven by underfunding, inadequate technical staffing, corruption, and political interference.