Transfer of Adjumani’s CAO linked to corruption

Adjumani | Grandfield Oryono Omonda, former Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) of Adjumani district, has been transferred to Butaleja district.

He left Adjumani amid allegations of mismanaging shs1.1 billion in withholding taxes. James Ocen Andrew succeeds him.

Grandfield, who was transferred to Adjumani in February 2022, was accused by contractors of mismanaging withholding taxes and introducing an illegal 10% for each contract to be awarded.

During the handover ceremony in the council boardroom, Grandfield thanked district chairman Ben Anyama for his support.

He described Anyama as a visionary, principled, and honest leader who never interfered with the affairs of the CAO office.

Oryono used a tactical withdrawal approach to show his remorse, begging forgiveness from those whose toes he had trampled.

“Please forgive me if I have stepped on your toes,” Oryono asked.

“Finally, I must salute myself for competently managing Adjumani District Local Government, record here cannot be matched and erased in the archives of CAO’s office.”

The district chairman, Anyama, who has been accused of providing blanket protection to the CAO even when he was mismanaging the district’s affairs, stated that he has worked with four CAOs since taking office in May 2021.

He stated that no CAO was transferred due to a disagreement with the LC5 office.

He praised the former CAO for his outstanding performance since his transfer to Adjumani. He was ranked 101 out of 176 districts and municipalities in Uganda, but his rating dropped to 71 in the fiscal year 2022-2023.

The rating also dropped to 35 in the previous fiscal year, and Anyama described him as an honest and sober leader amidst bottled-up protests from technical officers.

He reassured CAO Ocen that he was in good hands and asked the technical officers not to mistreat him but to work together.

The new CAO requested cooperation from the district’s civil servants and elected leaders to ensure effective service delivery.

He is aware of the challenge ahead of him and recognises the importance of teamwork in managing the expectations of the population and other critical stakeholders.

“When I fall short, I will need your massive support; therefore, I ask you to give me your listening ears when such a time manifests, but I also reciprocate and give you my listening ears.

“I pledge my commitment to working together so that we shall elevate the district to a desired standard by the time I leave Adjumani district,” CAO Ocen said.