By Simon Wokorach
Gulu
President Museveni has directed that money raised from auctioning impounded animals of non-compliant cattle owners should be used to develop infrastructure in the affected areas.
While talking to journalists in a press conference Via Zoom on Friday, Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny Dollo, disclosed that the directive is contained in the letter he received on Friday morning from the President.
The directive follows reports from security that some of the cattle owners are abandoning their cattle on the farms.
“The letter directs that all the money that will be realized from selling the abandoned and impounded animals should be deposited into the district accounts,” Dollo said.
According to the chief justice, the money will be used to construct schools in each local government where the animals are being impounded.
Over 800 cattle due to exit Acholi sub region
During yet another press conference on Sunday, the Minister for Northern Uganda, Grace Freedom Kwiyocwiny, said that her office had not yet received any official communication regarding the president directive.
Meanwhile, Kwiyocwiny revealed that 830 heads of cattle belonging no non-compliant owners in Amuru and Gulu districts have already been identified for exit this week.
A report by the taskforce implementing the eviction indicates that the nine cattle owners are grazing their animals without the standard operation requirements such as fence and water source.
“If by tomorrow (Monday), they have not yet left, we shall go to court to obtain the order to impound these animals and the next step is to auction them as required by the law,” Minister Kwiyocwiny said.
Last month, the minister told journalists that there are more than 80,000 cattle belonging to migrant cattle owners.
On November 3rd, while talking to the community and leaders in Okidi Parish in Atiak Sub-County, Amuru district, President Museveni gave the non-complaint cattle keeper’s three weeks to leave northern Uganda.
Following the expiry of the ultimatum on November 24th, members of the district security committee, police and UPDF started evicting the non-complaint pastoralists on November 26th from Amuru district.
