CAO Obongi District Arrested, Returns Ugx 30.6m Meant For PDM

 

Andrew Leru

On Wednesday 18^th January, the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) of Obongi district was arrested and returned UGX 30.6M which he illegally obtained from the Parish Development Model (PDM) programme.

In a joint operation conducted by the Arua City officials and PDM secretariat, Andrew Leru the CAO was arrested on Tuesday 17th January by Arua City central police station.

According to Jovrine Kalisa, the deputy national coordinator of PDM, the recovered funds were meant for the implementation of the project activities in Nwoya district, however, Leru stole the money during his tenure as Nwoya CAO.

"The money was actually stolen by the former CAO of Nwoya in the name of Andrew Leru who is now the current CAO of Obongi district. So, I came here for that operation to recover the money worth Shs 30 million, and I’m glad we have recovered the money for the people of Nwoya district," she said.

However, according to Leru, the funds were meant for administrative costs in the implementation of the PDM during the 2021/2022 financial year. 

Leru, admitted that there was an omission on his part regarding the revolving fund, saying that he refunded the money as an example to those who have misappropriated the funds.

The purpose of PDM is to lift about 17.5 million Ugandans out of poverty by transforming them from a subsistence economy to a money economy.