MARACHA DISTRICT AUTHORITIES BAN NIGHT VIDEO HALLS AND DISCO’S TO END RISING INSECURITY

Community members of Olua clan during community Barraza

By Onzoma Albert

Arua City

The authorities in Maracha District have imposed an indefinite ban on operations of night video halls and disco operations in Tara sub-county.

This security measure was announced during a community Barraza, organized by members of the Olua clan in Pajama parish, Tara sub-county, to restore peace and prevent further violence.

The decision comes amid a surge in clan-based altercations and killings associated with unregulated night gatherings.

With this move the community aims to address issues like teenage pregnancies and gang activity that often flourish at these events.

Jimmy Otukibo, the chairman of the community Barraza organized by the Olua clan, explained that most of the recent deaths in the sub-county have involved members of their clan, which prompted clan members to work with district leaders to identify root causes and find solutions to mob justice incidents.

“We have rampant theft cases and rampant night disco operations which always results into killings done by the mob and because of these, we have registered a number of deaths in our clan” he said.

Recently, security forces were deployed in Tara following violent clashes at a night disco, which resulted in two deaths and extensive property damage.

Felix Amazu, an elder of the Olua clan, attributes the rampant killings and mob justice to factors such as peer pressure, low education levels, and high school dropout rates.

“Some of these boys, after we taking care of them, have refused to go to school. As they refuse school, they instead make their own groups and you cannot advise those groups. When you try to advise them, they plot you as a bad person. That’s how they begin to isolate from us in their peers and doing unwanted things in the community” he said.

Community members of Olua clan with Maracha district officials during community Barraza

Authorities also link insecurity in the area to drug and substance abuse, irresponsible parenting and a lack of guidance from religious, cultural and political leaders.

Revenge and aggressiveness among youths are also common in the area, another factor contributing to the situation.

In response, ASP Federick Emmanuel Isabrye, the officer in charge of Maracha central police station, announced that the district security committee has resolved to ban night discos in Tara sub-county.

He stated that these gatherings have become a source of insecurity, contributing to high school dropouts, teenage pregnancies, and early marriages.

“We have promptly been disorganizing these people without their notice so that we can avoid such occurrences. In this same sub-county, we banned night video and disco halls that have been causing threats to human life. That has been where criminals hide and cause danger to human life and end up stealing people’s property” ASP Isabrye said.

The district, along with local leaders and the police, is actively enforcing this ban to curb the rising insecurity, which has resulted in seven deaths so far between 2021 and 2026.

This comprehensive effort underscores the community’s commitment to restoring peace and addressing the social issues linked to night entertainment in Tara sub-county.