Lira District Speaker, Hon. Morris Adem Okello, has revealed how he successfully managed the administration of Lira District Local Council smoothly for the last two years without too many problems experienced by the council. He stated that he has always adhered to the principles of leadership, resolving a number of outstanding issues amicably among council members without resorting to conflicts during his current tenure in office.
Despite occasional disagreements among council members based on differences in opinion, he has not been at loggerheads with them but has guided them using various rules of procedures. In this context, he means he was using standard rules of procedures, the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda as amended in 1995, among other instruments of power.
He managed his council by maintaining open communication, especially on issues related to allowances and other council matters. “We know Lira City was carved out of Lira District, and hence we have to set a good example for them in the future as our political partners,” said Okello Adem.
Although matters related to the health department are somewhat technical, there is a challenge regarding Ogur Health Centre IV, which was supposed to be elevated to the status of a district hospital, but this has not happened. According to Mr. Adem, Lira Regional Referral Hospital serves the entire Lango sub-region, and Lira District should have its own district hospital. He expressed concern about the delay in elevating Ogur Health Centre IV, pointing out that the President recently made a statement in favor of elevating it to the status of a general hospital. However, he wonders why the delay persists and blamed unnamed individuals for not fulfilling their responsibilities.
Mr. Adem is now advocating for two ambulances to be allocated to Lira District, possibly stationed at Amach Health Centre IV and Ogur Health Centre IV, respectively, to assist in referrals and other health-related emergencies.
On the issue of PDM, he praised Lira District LCV Chairperson, Honourable RCM Okello Orik, for closely supervising the office of the CAO, as stipulated in the Local Government Act. This led to a better PDM disbursement status, achieving success at about 99 percent. He attributed the success to the collaborative efforts of the LCV chairperson, the office of the CAO, and the PDM focal point person, Mr. Okello Michael, who is known for not being greedy in his roles and responsibilities.
Mr. Adem narrated that council members maintained a hands-off approach with their eyes on the PDM Sacco list of the 58 PDM SACCOs, ensuring that councillors did not include their relatives as beneficiaries. He suggested that, together with the office of the CAO next year (2024), they will program to ensure that the office of the CAO works closely with honourable councillors to monitor the success stories of excelling beneficiaries under PDM in Lira District. This, he believes, will align Lira District with the rest of the country in terms of PDM success.
He emphasized working with the current leaders in office, from LC Ones up to the current President, General Yoweri Museveni Kaguta, for better service delivery.
