Lira district councilors boycott council meeting over unpaid allowances

Denish Ongora (denish.ongora@vol.co.ug)

Lira

A section of councilors of Lira district yesterday boycotted the district council meeting, in protest over their unpaid allowances.

Council was supposed to sit to discuss matters of development including: infrastructural development, roads maintenance, education and health matters.

However, the council meeting was not held after the speaker, Morris Adem Okello was forced to postpone the same due to lack of quorum.

Addressing journalists after meeting Lira RDC and the vice chairman, speaker Moris Adem said that he received a letter from 15 councilors a day earlier led by Bar Sub County chairman Denis Okii Opio indicating that they will not attend council meeting in protest over their unpaid allowances.

Adem acknowledged that the councilors were not paid their allowances for the last two quarters but added that they could have attended the council meeting to table their grievances.

He however said he also received a letter from the office of the district CAO indicating that the councilors were paid their allowances, something he is yet to probe further.

Adem said he will convene another council meeting once the issues of councilors’ allowances has been resolved.

Ogur LCV councilor Moses Otim accused some people of conniving with Denis Okii and other councilors to stifle development in Lira district.

The female elders’ councilor Apio Serina Otim said her effort to persuade the councilors to attend the council meeting proved futile.

Jolly Odongo Joe the male elders’ councilor asked the electorate to task these councilors to account for their election into office.

Out of 26 councilors of Lira district, only nine came to attend the council meeting while two tendered in their apologies.

Okii Denis said on16/12/2022 said they convene a meeting to resolve on their pending allowances but the meeting was snubbed by the speaker, Adem Morris.

Okii said they will attend the council meeting that will be convened in future on condition that their allowances have been cleared.