Ngora District – The Residents of Atapar village and Kapir town council in Ngora district, Teso sub-region, have protested the delayed completion of a gravity water flow project.
In 2023, the Ministry of Water and Environment embarked on the construction of a gravity water flow project to benefit residents in the two villages and one town council. The contract was awarded to Nexus Green Company, which is believed to be owned by some big shots in this government, to start work.
This publication learned that even after President Museveni paid Shs 10 million to the owner of the land where the deep borehole was to be drilled, no work has commenced.
The delay in the works has left locals struggling to get clean water, with many threatening not to support any NRM candidates should the system fail to be completed before the election period.
“Imagine we are now in 2025, and there is not a single drop of water for these communities. I really don’t know what the Ministry of Water people are thinking about it,” said John Okiria, one of the residents.
According to Okiria, they had a lot of joy when the Shs 10 million was delivered to the owner of the land by the State House team, who assured the public that by 2025, water would be connected to the two villages.
Deborah Akiteng, one of the councilors, said the water project in Atapar has turned into a ghost project and that the money seems to have been misappropriated.
“Investigations should be carried out on this project because it is us, the community, who suffer,” she said.
Geresem Opio, another resident, said people have continued to drink dirty water, sharing it with animals in the swamps.
“We have failed to understand the role of our elected leaders because no one is following up on this,” he said.
Opio said even the irrigation system and fish ponds project in Agu has failed to rescue the community from poverty due to shoddy work.
Several attempts to get a comment from Mr. Mike Odongo Lo Asio, the district chairperson of Ngora, were futile as his phones were off-network.
