President Museveni has appointed Safia Juuko Nalule as new Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) Chairperson, replacing the controversial Sylvia Muwebwa Nabatanzi Ntambi.
Safia Juuko Nalule is currently serving as the elected woman representative for People with Disabilities, Central Region, Uganda in Uganda’s tenth parliament.
In a letter dated March 23 addressed to the Speaker of parliament Rebecca Kadaga, the President also appointed Mr. Ojok Joel Cox as EOC Vice-Chairperson while Denis Tumusime, Zaidi Ibrahim Edema, and Sr. Mary Wasagali have been appointed as members of the commission.
“In exercise of the powers vested in the President by Article 32 (3) of the 1995 Constitution and Section 5(1) & (2) of the Equal Opportunities Commission Act, I have appointed persons below as Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and Members of the Equal Opportunities Commission, respectively,” Museveni said in the letter.
“I hereby forward their names and curriculum vitae for parliamentary approval.”
Last month, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Aggrey Kibenge ordered the chairperson of the Equal Opportunities Commission and other senior staff to hand over office immediately as their contract had expired.
Museveni in February this year declined to renew Ntambi’s contract after her contract expiring on the 19th of January 2021.
Ntambi has been battling charges of corruption and abuse of office at the anti-corruption court, and this explains why she could have been dropped by the president for the position.
Recently, the Director of Public Prosecutions, Jane Frances Abodo dropped all the corruption charges against Ms Ntambi. She communicated the decision in a January 18th, 2021 letter to the High Court Judge Margaret Tibulya.
The letter was tendered in court by State Attorney Gloria Inzikuru when the case came up for mention on Wednesday morning. Inzikuru told court that the DPP had lost interest in the three charges against Ntambi and asked the court to discontinue the matter.
As a result, Justice Margaret Tibulya discharged the accused person. Ntambi who has been out on bail has been facing one charge of corruption and two others of conspiracy to defraud. She has been facing the charges together with her nine assistants at the Equal Opportunities Commission for conspiring to defraud the government more than Shillings 35 million.
The assistants are Agnes Enid Kamahoro, Moses Mugabe, Mpitsi Mujuni, Ronnie Kwesiga, Manasseh Kwihangana, Harriet Byangire, Evans Jjemba, Sarah Nassanga and Sunday Nicholas Olwor.
The prosecution had alleged that Ntambi conspired with her co-accused to steal the money which they paid to themselves as per diem for editing and drafting the Equal Opportunities Commission HIV/AIDS workplace policy yet none of them was entitled to it.
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