By Jurugo Emmanuel Ogasto
Local council chairperson has threatened to shut down nightclubs in refugee camps, if owners continue allowing teenagers to enter.
Itula Sub County Chairperson in Obongi District of Uganda, Siraji Karala-Karala considers the measure following high rate of school dropouts.
He issued the threat during a victory celebrations of Refugee Welfare Council (RWC) 3 Chairperson of Palorinya Settlement, Dramundu Anthony Mogga.
Mr. Karala-Karala urged every stakeholder and parent to fight and put an end to nightclubs that mislead teenagers.
“Parents, let’s take care of our children. Let’s stop these unnecessary discos in the settlement. If we have child naming, wedding parties, or other functions, do it with the drums to give peace to the children,” the LC 3 Chairperson advised.
He further urged the children to remain in school and focus on books.
“What are you looking for in discos? Stay in school and plan how your future will be,’’ he added.
Meanwhile, Bul Garang Gak, the RWC III Chairperson for Refugees in Adjumani District, warned students against living reckless lives.
“For those kids who are in school, please avoid drinking alcohol; don’t look for money; if you are a boy, don’t look at ladies; and if you are a girl, don’t look for men,” he advised the learners.
Bul said that when one is absent from those key things, one will get the fruit of education.
Dramundu Anthony Mogga, the RWC 3 Chairperson Palorinya refugee’s settlement, added that they are ready to enforce the policy but accused the sub-county authority of issuing stamps to the disco operators.
“We are going to be working closely with the sub-county local government; as refugee leaders, we have already pledged to stop discos across the settlement other than having our traditional way of entertaining whenever there are events,” he said.
According to Peter Oyit, the RWC 2 Chairperson for Zone 2, the rampant staging of the night discos is fueled by the top security organs.
“Discos in the refugee settlement, we tried our best to ensure that we stopped it, but sometimes we fail because the owners of the discos have the upper hand in cooperating with the high-security organs like the DPCs, DISOs, and other stakeholders beyond us,” he noted.
Oyit added that they are going to stand firm and cooperate so that they can be able to reduce the nightclubs and switch to traditional entertainment by using the local drums to ensure that the children study in a good environment for better performance.