The chairpersons include Kenneth Okot of Atiak Town Council, Samuel AKera of Atiak Sub County, and Peter Lukwiya of Opara Sub County. They were arrested by the police on Friday on allegations of arson and malicious damage, following an operation they conducted against illegal charcoal dealers in the area.
The three Sub County Chairpersons
of the greater Atiak in Amuru district who were arrested by the police have
been released unconditionally.
The chairpersons include Kenneth
Okot of Atiak Town Council, Samuel AKera of Atiak Sub County, and Peter Lukwiya
of Opara Sub County. They were arrested by the police on Friday on allegations
of arson and malicious damage, following an operation they conducted against
illegal charcoal dealers in the area.
Okidi Parish is one of the areas in Amuru district that have
been highly degraded by activities of illegal charcoal dealers and loggers.
The
dealers have indiscriminately razed hundreds of acreages of endangered tree
species like Shea nut, Afzelia Africana, Mvule, and Mahogany for charcoal and
logs.
But after this operation, the officials
were accused of torching huts, burning more than 240 bags of charcoal, and
damaging solar panels and clothes belonging to Michael Okema Opilo, the former
Chairperson Elegu Town Council.
According to Opilo, the trio entered
his farmland in Ogom “A” Village between January 11 and 20, 2022 without his consent
and destroyed the said properties, causing him a financial loss of about 20
million Shillings for which he is seeking compensation. He said he had cleared
the land, measuring approximately 230 acres for sugarcane growing
//Cue in; ‘’owoto I area…
Cue out…kunu dok aye.’’//
The arrest of the Sub County
Chairpersons had aroused tensions amongst a section of leaders and opinion
leaders in the area prompting threats of demonstrations. However, the police
through the Amuru District Police Commander unconditionally released the trio
and urged them to settle the matter amicably.
Atiak Sub County chairperson Samuel
Akera told URN after his release on Saturday that a meeting has been set
between the complainant and the accused together with the police to tentatively
take place on Thursday next week.
On Thursday this week, the
security team and the leadership of Greater Atiak raided an illegal charcoal
dealers' camp in the same area and destroyed hundreds of logs, dozens of
makeshift dwellings, and impounded two power saws.
Emmy Daniel Ojara
Freelancer