State Minister for Teso Affairs Kenneth Ongalo Obote has defended the ongoing verification exercise for beneficiaries under the government compensation program, saying it is a crucial step in eliminating fraud and restoring accountability in the process.
Speaking in an interview, Obote described the screening exercise as the most important phase of the compensation process, noting that once a verified and clean register is established, future payments will be more transparent and efficient.
He explained that government aims to build a reliable list from which genuine beneficiaries will be paid whenever funds are released.
"Once these beneficiaries have been screened, now it is from that list that when new money comes in, they'll just keep picking from that list and paying," Obote said.
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According to the minister, government is particularly concerned about attempts by some individuals who have already received compensation to re-enter the system fraudulently.
He cited a case in Soroti where a beneficiary allegedly admitted to receiving up to Shs9 million but was reportedly attempting to register again.
Obote also warned that some leaders and influential individuals were allegedly trying to manipulate the system by inserting names of deceased persons, taking advantage of weak civil registration systems.
"That is why we have to be very careful. If this first step is not done properly, we are going to end up with the same problems we had in the past," he said.
He further explained that the earlier compensation exercise was halted after inconsistencies were discovered between court-verified claimants and lists submitted under the Ministry of Justice compensation framework, which he said excluded many affected victims in the Teso sub-region.
Obote emphasized that the revised process is intended to ensure fairness by including all legitimate victims, especially those who did not pursue court action but were still affected.
On the role of his ministry, the minister said the Ministry of Teso Affairs remains central in addressing historical grievances and coordinating development initiatives in the region.
"I would consider myself very successful as Minister for Teso Affairs if I could do the things in Teso that would eventually render this ministry irrelevant because whatever it was created to do has been done," he said.
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He acknowledged that while progress has been made over the past five years, significant work remains in addressing the region's socio-economic challenges.
