President Yoweri Museveni has donated 300 million Shillings to the Bonabagagawale-Nyekundiire Group to support farmers and older needy persons. Nyekundiire has over 180,000 members drawn from six districts which include Rukungiri, Rukiga, Ntungamo, Rubanda, Kabale and Kisoro.
Peace Rugambwa Twinamatsiko, Nyekundiire Chairperson said Museveni’s 300 million shillings is part of the 4.5 billion pledge he made in the last presidential campaign period. According to Rugambwa, the President promised that the money was to come in instalments and he has now delivered 300 million shillings.
Rugambwa, who addressed the media in Kampala said they are starting with priority areas which include buying blankets, mattresses and bedsheets for elderly persons who cannot afford these items on their own.
Rugambwa said each of the 180,000 members paid 12,000 shillings as a subscription fee and they don’t pay any other amount but benefit from items they lobby from government agencies including Museveni’s pledge.
Because members have different interests, Rugambwa said the 300 million shillings will be split to meet a portion of each member’s desire. Some members are interested in growing onions, others are interested in coffee planting and there are also those interested in chicken rearing.
However, there have emerged some fights regarding how Rugambwa operates. It is alleged that some people who want to take charge of Rugambwa are not contented with how Rugambwa makes decisions on who benefits from the money.
Topher Arabasha, the head of Rukungiri Nyekundiire members’ group comprised of more than 40,000 subscribers said there are people determined to sabotage Rugambwa’s efforts to elevate the economic levels of residents in the districts of the Kigezi sub-region because of personal interests.
“The President asked us to help him with eight years of poverty among his people. He asked us to mobilize people to develop themselves using government programs. But we have now people who even disperse our meetings. Last week, leaders used police to disperse a meeting of Nyekundiire members who had come from 17 sub-counties,” Arabasha said.
Sabiiti Rubegyemera, Ntungamo District Nyekundiire Chairperson, said many farmers have benefited from the association and it is painful to them to see that it is being affected by people with selfish benefits.
