Moyo Officials Accused of Trying to Annex Refugee Hosting Palorinya Sub County Over Funds

 

Obongi county MP Hassan Kaps Fungaroo has accused a section of government leaders hailing from Moyo district of trying to annex Palorinya sub county situated in neighboring Obongi district.

Officials from the two districts according to Fungaroo, have been clashing over the Shs 15 billion refugee funds.

He says government’s move in July this year to create Obongi district did not augur well with the Moyo leaders who all long had benefited from refugee funds as a refugee host.

Once it became apparent that Obongi district would benefit from humanitarian funds by virtue of hosting the Palorinya refugee settlement, the MP says the situation turned violent.

“They support the idea that Palorinya should be curved and be taken to Moyo so that refugees will be in Moyo and money will continue coming there,” he said.

Fungaroo believes this was the reason he was attacked in July’s chaos that left 15 houses and a mosque burnt to ashes.

The MP claims Moyo leaders continue to send hooligans to attack everyone they perceive to be working against their interests.

Some of the victims of these attacks, he says, include an Inspector of Schools known as Sulaiman and the Palorinya parish priest among many others.

“Anyone who is seen as supporting Obongi or this idea; fire, fire, fire. Even the Parish Priest for Palorinya was attacked because he said he was supporting Obongi,” Fungaroo said.

This though, Fungaroo says, shouldn’t be an issue anymore since Hillary Onek, the minister for relief, disaster preparedness and refugee matters pronounced himself over this matter in March this year.

In a letter, Onek directed that 3.5 billion shillings that had wrongfully been allocated to Moyo under the Discretionary Development Equalization Fund be reverted to Obongi

This he said was premised on the fact that Moyo was no longer a refugee hosting district and other funds must follow suit.

However, Fungaroo is confident that now that Tom Butime the local government minister has pronounced himself on the matter, normalcy would return to the area.

The MP also accused police of arresting and then releasing some ringleaders of the July’s attacks.

“They arrested 8 peoplem the ringleaders and they were brought to Obongi police station. Unfortunately, from Moyo the RPC ordered the DPC of Obongi that these people should be released unconditionally,” he adds.

Formerly located in Moyo district but now in newly created Obongi district, Palorinya Refugee settlement is home to over 100,000 people of flight.