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“I know prisons has good construction unit. If you know how to build houses why don’t you build more prisons by yourselves so that the Ministry of Internal Affairs only looks for money to buy materials and you concentrate on building prisons,” Museveni said.
Museveni was reacting to an earlier comment by the Commissioner General of Prisons, Dr. Johnson Byabashaija in regards to the issue of congestion for inmates.
“Our congestion at the moment is 360%. This is a very serious issue because it impacts on morbidity and mortality of inmates and health of the staff,” Dr. Byabashaija said.
Museveni however said it’s just high time prisons expanded their construction unit.
“The army had that problem of contractors. They were about to kill Uganda. When I analyzed it for the army people, I showed them they were in the wrong direction. Many contractors in Uganda are poor themselves. They don’t have their own capital. When you give them jobs to construct, they go to commercial banks, borrow money at 24% to come and buy materials. Because they are private sector people, they want a profit of 20%. Already, you have got 44% additional money. Nothing to do with building but the contractor will first have to pay banks and then his big profit. There is also 18% VAT,” Museveni said.
Uganda Prisons has a construction unit that has been at the same stage for long. However, just as the president said, it’s time for them to go to another level.
Check Also;
- 65 Senior Prisons Officers Promoted
- Journalist Andrew Mwenda In Awe Of Ugandan Prison Food, Plans To Get Jailed
- I Would Have Died If Not For Dr. Byabashaija; Kakwenza
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![[dropcap]A[/dropcap] section of women in Bugongo parish and Nawangaiza parish in Nawandala Sub County, Iganga District have decried the near-impossible terms set for them to access GROW funds. They have now petitioned their woman member of parliament for Iganga Hon. Kauma Sauda Alibaawo to ask the government for revised terms and conditions. This is to enable them to benefit from the program. The disgruntled women accuse the implementers of the program of charging the money. They are also asking for their land titles and land agreements. They said that such properties are governed by their husbands. These, therefore want the government through their woman MP to intervene and revise the requirements for one to benefit. The women were on Wednesday at Namabwere primary school in Nawandala Sub County. They had gathered in their respective groups to receive over 300 chickens from Hon Alibaawo in her campaign to improve the livelihood of women in Iganga district. Each group was given 50 chicken as start-up capital in their journey to prosperity. Read what some leaders said; Ms Naigambi Lydia from Nawandala Trading Centre says, “They solicited money from us through opening bank accounts and depositing Shs80,000. They also asked for land titles and land agreements from us yet we don’t have such things. I was informed that I needed to have a business with a capital of Shs4m yet my capital was very small.” The chairperson Kisoboka Saving Group in Nawandala Ms. Nakagolo Faith said they were not able to join the program. This is given the many conditions attached. She also asked their woman MP to raise their concerns to the relevant offices. The MP condemned the mode of implementation of the program. She cited that it has turned to benefit the well-off class of women other than the intended group. She further asked the government to intervene saying the current strings attached to the programme are very tight to accommodate a common woman. GROW project is a Government of Uganda initiative that arose out of the need to respond to the needs of women entrepreneurs. This is especially those who want to grow their businesses, sustain their self-employment and create more jobs. Check Also; Iganga District NRM Leaders Urge Museveni To Fulfill Election Promises Of 2021 International Women's Day: Celebrating Progress Towards Equality](https://newslexpoint.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Iganga-women-decry-tough-terms-to-access-GROW-funds-e1731738339732.jpg)