KAMPALA, UGANDA: The saga surrounding the theft of Iron sheets that were meant for the various vulnerable households in Karamoja sub-region has once again placed the National Resistance Movement (NRM), the ruling party in the spotlight.
The scandal has also not spared president Museveni who has in the past few years advocated for zero-tolerance to corruption.
Although officials that have been mentioned in this scandal are still innocent until proven guilty, the image of the government has been tainted.
Recently, the Members of Parliament from Karamoja Sub-region kicked off a process to censure the minister-in-charge of Karamoja Affairs, Mary Goretti Kitutu, over allegations of diversion of relief items meant for the vulnerable people of Karamoja.
Kitutu is also accused of failure to deliver iron sheets and other supplies meant for Karamoja to support the ongoing disarmament exercise and the diversion of some items to non-intended beneficiaries.
Some of the ministers implicated in this saga included, First Deputy Prime Minister Rebecca Kadaga, State Minister for Primary Education Moriku Kaducu, third Deputy premier Rukia Nakadama, and Finance Minister Matia Kasaija (300).
Others are; Finance State minister Amos Lugoloobi (300), Government Chief Whip Hamson Obua and Bwino Kyagulaga, the junior Agriculture minister. Kasaija and Kadaga have since acknowledged receiving these iron sheets.
The scandal which has since sucked in a number of ministers poses a question whether president Museveni is willing to sacrifice them or allow the image of his government to be dented.
Sarah Bireete, the executive director of Center for Constitutional Governance said president Museveni has lost all the ability to fight corruption in this country because of his “patronage and greed for power”
According to Bireete, Museveni is only interested in loyalty and he can only act when he finds out that one of his ministers is conniving against him, something he cannot tolerate.
“The ministers are aware that he (Museveni) cannot act. Ugandans need to know that they are on their own when it comes to the abuse of office and misuse of public resources. If we had a sensible government this cabinet would have been overturned but we don’t have,” Bireete said.
Based on her experience of working with president Museveni, the former minister of Ethics and Integrity, Miria Matembe believes that sacking these officials implicated in the saga would be a miracle.
Expressing her disappointment towards the regime, Matembe cited some of the previous government officials who were dropped and later reappointed to the government, a sign she said shows incompetence of the regime.
“It would be a miracle which I would receive so highly if he acted, particularly those people who were involved in the scandal. You see, president Museveni no longer cares about Ugandans. If he was to act, why should there be inquiries?” she queried.
Butambala County MP, Muhammad Muwanga Kivumbi said president Museveni has sidelined the delivery mechanisms and institutions for service delivery to the people of Uganda and instead put his focus on individuals.
“On this saga, I can bet he (Museveni) will not act because it is his way of work and he loves it. Have you ever seen a president moving with envelopes, sacks of money? When we talk of social and structural reforms of a country, this is what we meant to achieve. The whole thing is upside down,” he said.
The director communications at NRM secretariat, Emmanuel Dombo has however noted that Museveni can take a serious action depending on the validity of the evidence that will be produced.
“I don’t think the president will take action on the ear say but if there is evidence the president will take action,” he said.
On the issue of reappointment of some officials, especially those who have been censured before, Dombo said the law gives more power to the Parliament to approve and disapprove anyone who has been reappointed.
“Going forward we may need to review the law again, so that it compels the president not to reappoint such a person or to prevent reappointment of such a person but president has taken so many actions to so many,” he said.
Below are some of the top known scandals in the past and how president Museveni did little or nothing about the offenders.
Uganda Commercial Bank (UCB) sale scandal (1998)
Salim Saleh, brother to President Museveni was embroiled in this scandal. Parliament stopped the sale of 49% shares of the Uganda Commercial Bank, then the biggest bank in the country and entirely government-owned, to a Malaysian company.
Saleh resigned as defence adviser, after admitting a role in brokering the deal with Westmont Land Asia, the successful bidder, which had been found to be a “briefcase company” with no banking experience.
Mismanagement of Universal Primary Education (UPE)
Then Brig. Jim Muhwezi, the Minister of Education, was forced to resign by the Sixth Parliament due to alleged mismanagement of the then newly-established Universal Primary Education. The war against corruption seems to be a very big task for this government to eliminate epically in this period.
According to the sources at least over 20 ministers received these iron sheets. We are yet to see what happens after the investigation whether they will be dropped or not.
Congo plunder (2005)
The International Court of Justice sitting in the Hague in 2005, found Uganda guilty of violating the sovereignty of the Democratic Republic of Congo, plundering its natural resources and orchestrating human rights abuses when it sent its troops between 1997 and 2003. The court accordingly slapped a whopping $10 billion fine on Uganda. The government said it had sent soldiers over to Congo to pursue Allied Democratic Forces rebels who were terrorising parts of western Uganda, but some of the top commanders, including Gen. Salim Saleh and Maj. Gen. Kahinda Otafiire, was accused of plundering Congo’s resources.
CHOGM 2007
This came to public attention in 2011 where several ministers, including former Vice-President, Gilbert Bukenya, Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi and former state minister for Works and Transport, John Byabagambi, were implicated in the mismanagement of billions of public funds meant for the 2007 CHOGM summit.
Others implicated were ministers John Nasasira, Mwesigwa Rukutana and Isaac Musumba. Although Parliament allocated sh270 billion to the summit, the Auditor General discovered that more than sh370 billion was spent.The figures went up to sh500 billion after the parliamentary accounts committee grilled those who spent the funds.
The probe, commissioned by President Yoweri Museveni, found that money was lost in irregular procurement of the CHOGM cars, road construction and repairs, and the renovation of Entebbe Airport, among other ventures.
Several permanent secretaries interrogated claimed they had acted on orders from former Vice-President Gilbert Bukenya, who was the chairman of the Cabinet sub-committee on CHOGM.
Bukenya was accused of influence-peddling in the sh19 billion CHOGM car deal, but later court acquitted him.
Temangalo 2008
The National Social Security Fund (NSSF) Temangalo saga was another big scald that came to light in July 2008 when reports emerged that the former Prime Minister Patrick Amama Mbabazi, then security minister and Amos Nzeyi had been paid sh11 billion by the Fund for 414 acres of land, with each acre going for sh24 million.
It was reported that the price was higher than that on the market, resulting in the Fund losing billions of shillings.
Knight Frank put the price of an acre in the area at sh18 million, East African Consulting Surveyors at sh16 million and Associated Consulting Surveyors at sh14 million.
NSSF decided to go for what it called an open market price of sh24 million. The Parliamentary probe found that Mbabazi used his clout as Security Minister to force NSSF to purchase his land.
Global Fund 2008
The money was meant for malaria and tuberculosis drugs programmes. At the time of investigations, $10m (sh25 billion) was missing, although some sources put the figure at $37 (sh95.8 billion).
The scandal sucked in former health minister Jim Muhwezi and his then deputies Mike Mukula and Alex Kamugisha.Some of the known culprits include the director of economic affairs in the President’s Office, Teddy Cheeye and former production manager of Uganda Television, Fred Kavuma.
Since its creation in 2002, the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has committed $5.1 billion in grants to more than 130 countries to fight the three diseases.
ID Scandal 2010
Parliament discovered that the government borrowed over sh150 billion to finance the project, which has never kicked off after the government struck a deal with Mühlbauer, a German firm, to supply national IDs.According to the PAC, contracting the firm resulted in a financial loss of sh19 billion.
It is alleged that In February, 2010 Muhlbauer High Tech was allegedly contracted without open bidding as required by law. The company was to supply and install equipment for production of the identity cards. The IDs were supposed to be used to identify eligible voters during the 2011 elections but by February last year, the company had reportedly produced only 400 cards.
The ministers implicated include former general duties minister, Kiddu Makubuya, former Internal Affairs minister, Kirunda Kivejinja and the local government Permanent Secretary, Steven Kagoda.
Hassan Basajjabalaba compensation scandal (2011)
At least two ministers, Syda Bbumba who was the minister of finance and the then Attorney General Kiddu Makubuya, were sucked alongside three members of staff at State House on the matter. This was after Sh169 billion was ‘erroneously’ issued to city tycoon Hassan Basajjabalaba as compensation for the loss of business for the city markets last year.
Government however exonerated the late former Bank of Uganda governor, Tumusiime Mutebile of any wrongdoing in the compensation.
Bicycle 2011
In this period, the Ministry of Local Government contracted Amman Industrial Tool and Equipment Limited, a locally-registered company to supply 70,000 bicycles meant for LCs, but no single bicycle was delivered. The company was reportedly paid $1.7 million (about sh4 billion).
Microfinance and Specioza Kazibwe 2011
Sh 60 billion went missing from Microfinance Support Centre (MSC) in a record three months.The former Vice-President Dr. Specioza Wandira Kazibwe, who was the board chairperson of MSC was subsequently suspended over allegations of abuse of office and mismanagement in the office she assumed in 2008.
Other board members who were suspended included MP Tim Lwanga, Mutebi Kityo, Charles Ogol from the Finance Ministry and Twino Musinguzi.
Pension’s scandal (2012)
In 2012 Sh169 billion that were meant to clear outstanding pension claims of 1,018 former East African Community workers went missing. The money is said to have been siphoned through Cairo International Bank, with connivance from top employees of the ministries of Public Service and Finance.
The East African Community Beneficiaries Association general secretary, Peter Sajjabi, admitted to the Police that he had recommended the 1,018 names, which he said were passed on to him by the Ministry of Public Service, to Cairo International Bank for account opening.
Original Article: NilePost
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