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BY RICHARD DRASIMAKU
ARUA: WEDNESDAY, MAY 28, 2025
A united leadership is required to nurture the young city, Bernard Atiku, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Ayivu constituency when Arua City was created, has said.
As he plots a political comeback, Atiku insisted in an interview that being a new entity, the City needs an experienced person to bring the different Members of Parliament (who total four at present) and the City council to undertake coordinated efforts in order to accelerate its growth and development.
The former legislator dived into his legacy to highlight projects some of which have either vanished or stalled since his exit from elective politics five years ago or are limping, which he said have prompted him to take the decision to plot a comeback.
“I believe I have the capacity, knowledge and resourcefulness required to represent the City in Parliament. Will reactivate my former networks to lobby for resources,” he said.
Among the personal initiatives that he had spearheaded while a law maker was the Ayivu Education Promotion Fund that he operated in Partnership with the New Vision Printing and Publishing Co. ltd. Anchored on a Newspapers in Education program and a scholarship program.
At least 51 students in Ayivu were enrolled for four-year sponsorship in the ordinary Lever of secondary education during the first two years of the initiative (2011 and 2012).
The scheme covered the children’s school fees for the entire four years of ordinary level and encouraged them to go to secondary schools within the constituency since one of the objectives is to uplift the performance of these schools.
The children must continue to perform well (not passing in a position above five), exhibit exemplary leadership and observe discipline otherwise the scholarship would be withdrawn.
Similarly, their parents must fulfill their obligations such as providing scholastic materials, attend parent, teachers association (PTA) meetings and lead model family lives while the schools are expected to excel in enforcing discipline and other performance enhancing measures.
“The government has done its best by constructing good schools in the villages. Muni university and other institutions have being build. We must produce the right quality children to join these institutions,” Atiku stressed at the ime.
The MP donated science textbooks to the secondary schools emphasizing that the books should be used to redirect the children to learn sciences which is now the trend globally.
“I will put back education at the core of our politics, revive the Ayivu education trust fund to upscale scholarships and bursaries for bright children,” he pointed out.
He indicated that the initiative died when he was voted out of office in a bid to represent Ayivu West, one of the three constituencies in the City and was replaced by the current MP, John Lematia.
Atiku who is the current chairman of the Arua City Land board also put emphasis on land security, something he started but also halted after losing his position.
While describing it as hazards or disadvantages of lack of continuity of a leader who is the vision bearer, Atiku stressed that security of the land tenure would ease land acquisition for investments and also protect people’s property for production.
He is looking back at his ten-year experience in Parliament as a useful asset in his quest for re-election, having being a counselor in the Arua district council from 2006 to 2011.
He reaffirmed his membership to the ruling National Resistance Movement party having crossed there from the opposition Forum for Democratic Change.
However Atiku did not take part in NRM internal elections for the structures as a party leader in order to give chance to other people while focusing on his preparations for the parliamentary race.
Reflecting back on his tenure of office as an MP, Atiku recounts standing together with the government to ensure that West Nile is hooked to the national grid to eradicate incessant power outages.
A 132kv power line has since been extended from Olwiyo to Arua. “Having this electricity here is not enough if it is not utilized for establishing industries to create employment for the young people,” argued Atiku.
“We expect this electricity to be used to industrialize, Arua city, West Nile, create employment and generate income. Attracting investors to acclimatize with the environment is very important and it is a role for leaders to play,” he added.
Another key mile stone he cited is the modern main market under markets and agricultural trade improvement program (MATIP).
However Atiku noted that during the displacement of vendors to create space for the reconstruction of the new market, two more informal markets sprouted – near the social center and at Lobidra near the abattoir- that it would be crucial for the city leaders to collectively push for construction of additional markets.
In the health sector, he cited the expansion of the Arua regional referral hospital. The blood bank etc. to improve health services for the region and neighbouring communities from North-Eastern Democratic republic of Congo.
He also mentioned the Muni University which began when Atiku was the chairman of Arua district social services committee, still needs its dispensary to be fully upgraded with a university hospital.
“The city divisions according to the prevailing government policy are supposed to have general hospitals. The central sewerage plant has been operational but it needs to expand beyond the central division to the other divisions.
The urban water system needs expansion, to serve the ever increasing population, of the city, meanwhile the city roads need upgrading, the Kebir-Onduparaka and the circular road from Euata to Awindiri via Pajulu, the Arua-Barifa-Muni University road and the Anyafiyo-Dadamu-Manibe roads are lined up for tarmacking under the new phase of the Uganda Support to Municipal Infrastructure Development (USMID)
Arua airfield upgrade to an international airport has stalled and the government needs to be convinced to recommence the project, he proposed.
Atiku says this is because a sh68b which was planned for Arua airfield upgrade while he was in the Parliament was diverted after him to construct Jinja airport which by flight statistics fall far behind Arua that is the second busiest aerodrome in Uganda after Entebbe International Airport.
