Museveni orders action against CHOGM officials

PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has directed that severe action be taken against civil servants and political leaders who flouted procurement rules and regulations during the preparations for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) hosted in Kampala in 2007.

In a directive to Prime Minister Apolo Nsibambi, Museveni said taking action against the culprits “will deter any corrupt tendencies amongst public servants and political leaders.”

He warned that government officials caught stealing and wasting public funds will face the law.

According to a release from State House, Museveni yesterday said: “I spared these people during my campaign trail because the public was very annoyed with the poor performers. I made a public contract to the voters that action will be taken against the corrupt and the non-performers.”

The directive, made yesterday in the address to a consultative workshop with the donors on the budget for the financial year 2011/2012, comes just days after Parliament exonerated Vice-President Prof. Gilbert Bukenya and three ministers of misuse of funds during the 2007 Commonwealth Summit that cost sh500b.

Cleared last week were ministers Sam Kutesa (foreign affairs), Eng. John Nasasira (works) and Prof. Khiddu Makubuya (Attorney General).

The Auditor General and the Parliament public accounts committee have said the ministers caused loss of 740,000 euros (sh6b) in the leasing of executive cars used by the dignitaries.

The President in his address at the Serena International Conference Centre in Kampala reiterated the Government’s commitment to good governance, service delivery, the anti-corruption crusade and improvement of infrastructure.

Museveni also said an anti-corruption committee to investigate political leaders and senior public officers named in corruption-related scandals will be put in place soon.

“The committee is mandated, among other duties, to recommend disciplinary action and prosecution where necessary,” he said.

On the management of oil revenue, he dismissed allegations that the oil resource will be a curse to Uganda, saying the Government will provide for the prudent management and accountability of petroleum resources.

All revenues will be collected by the Uganda Revenue Authority, he said.

Museveni also said necessary mechanisms for transparency and accountability shall be put in place before large scale oil revenues begin to accrue.

A petroleum fund, into which all oil and gas revenues will be deposited, shall be established.

In order to ensure transparency, the fund will have a dual role of financing government priorities in infrastructure through budgeting and saving for the future generations.

All spending, the President said, will be done through the budget. He stressed the importance of the non-oil economy, adding that it will be protected.

Museveni said the Bank of Uganda will act on behalf of the Government through its investment strategy consistent with its handling of Uganda’s foreign exchange reserves.

“The manner in which oil revenue will be managed must not compromise the growth and export potential of non-oil sectors,” he said.

FDC to fight over Chogm House scandal

The Forum for Democratic Change has declared “a fresh war” against the ruling National Resistance Movement, following the controversial decision by Parliament last week to exonerate four ministers of blame in the Chogm scandal. “It’s going to be a protracted war, a peaceful war, and it (the Chogm scandal) is going to be one of the issues which we are going to use for sensitising the public,” said FDC spokesperson Wafula Oguttu in Kampala yesterday.

Charges of abuse of office and causing financial loss have dogged Vice-President Gilbert Bukenya and senior ministers Sam Kutesa (Foreign Affairs), John Nasasira (Works) and Attorney General Khiddu Makubuya since the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting nearly four years ago.

Despite the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee findings that the ministers were involved in the misuse of at least Shs500 billion, NRM legislators unanimously absolved them.
FDC MPs walked out in protest following the announcement by Speaker Edward Ssekandi on Thursday, a move Mr Oguttu says was okay.

“NRM uses its majority in Parliament to get away with murder,” he said. “They are murderers because they steal drugs from sick people who die… they will steal government money for building roads and leave potholes on roads and many accidents occur.”

Chogm report delayed?
Mr Oguttu also said the Chogm report was delayed until after the February elections because the government feared it would cost them votes, an allegation dismissed by NRM spokesperson Ofwono Opondo as “absolute rubbish”. “The politicians named in Chogm, are not responsible for fundraising for the party. If they took any money, they must have taken it as private individuals,” Mr Opondo said.

State House spokesperson Tamale Mirundi was quick to distance Mr Museveni from Parliament’s decision. He said by setting up the probe and entrusting independent institutions with the outcome, Mr Museveni acted within his presidential powers.

“The President works through institutions. There is nobody who has been arrested over corruption, taken to court then the case is dropped because of the President’s intervention,” Mr Mirundi said. “The beauty of prosecuting lies in the DPP (Directorate of Public Prosecutions) – the beauty of investigating crimes lies in the CID (Criminal Investigations Department)”.

Mr Robert Lugolobi, the executive director of Transparency International, called Parliament’s decision “a disappointment” and questioned the will of institutions to prosecute. “There is always the fear of interfering,” he said. The Chogm report will be tabled before Parliament today.

MPs want details from government on sale of oil wells

Posted Saturday, April 2 2011 at 00:00

Legislators yesterday tasked the government to explain the status of Uganda’s oil and gas wells and reports that Tullow Oil had sold part of the wells to two foreign companies.
The MP for Lwemiyaga County, Mr Theodore Ssekikubo, raised the concern as a matter of national importance and questioned why Tullow Oil had sold the oil wells to China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) and Total, a French oil firm, without Parliament’s knowledge.

Not informed
“The wells have been sold by Tullow Oil to a Chinese and French company at $2.9 billion yet we are not in the know. Since we have cabinet ministers represented here, when shall we be availed with copies of the sale agreement?,” Mr Ssekikubo asked.
Mr Henry Banyenzaki, the chairperson of the Parliamentary Forum on Oil and Gas, informed the House that all oil related problems should have been solved if the government had put in place the Oil Revenue Management Bill.

“”How far have you gone in as far as tabling the Bill is concerned,” Mr Banyenzaki asked.
The Parliament Chief Whip, Mr Daudi Migereko, however, saved the situation when he informed the House that the government would give a statement clarifying on the matter.
“I have been directed by the Prime Minister that I contact the Ministry of Energy to come up with a statement on the transaction,” he said.

He said the Energy Minister, Mr Hillary Onek, would on Tuesday give a statement on the status of the oil wells. Tullow Oil is set to challenge the Shs1.1 trillion tax that the government wants from the sale of its interests in Uganda to the CNOOC and Total.

The company on Tuesday, agreed to sell about 67 per cent of its interests in three oil blocks in Uganda for $2.9 billion (Shs6.9 trillion), to the two firms. The government is eyeing $472.7 million (Shs1.1 trillion) as capital gains tax due from the transaction.
Total and CNOOC are coming on board to create a joint venture which will establish a $10 billion refinery by 2015.

Tullow becomes the second oil exploration company to dispute the 30 per cent capital gains tax that is imposed on oil deals by Uganda. In April last year, Heritage Oil and Gas disputed a tax bill of $404 million that government slapped on its $1.45 billion deal after it sold its stake in Blocks 1 and 3A to Tullow oil.

UK funding to uganda depends on the government's commitment to tackle corruption

When the United Kingdom’s Coalition Government came to power last year we knew that tough economic times would call for tough choices. But we will not balance our books on the backs of the poor – whether in Britain or around the world.

That is why we have made a commitment to provide 0.7 per cent of the United Kingdom’s Gross National Income as aid. As a result of that decision, we have faced criticism from some who think that aid should be cut.

But I believe that the next four years represent an opportunity to change lives and transform communities across the developing world. Yet if the world is to make real progress in the fight against poverty in these four years that remain to reach the Millennium Development Goals, we need to ensure that our collective efforts have the greatest possible impact.

That is why my first act as the United Kingdom’s Secretary of State for International Development was to instigate a review of all our aid around the world. That review has looked at where we spend our money, how aid is delivered, and the results we achieve.

As a result of the review, we have re-oriented our programme in Uganda to align it with emerging priorities and with the overarching policy of the Uganda National Development Plan to “intertwine economic growth and poverty eradication”.

Working with and through a variety of partners in Uganda, we will support poverty eradication and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. We will engage with public and private providers in the health sector, focussing on improving maternal and child health and boosting access to modern forms of family planning. We will commission research to improve the quality of malaria prevention and will direct resources to preventing new HIV/AIDS infections. We will continue with our support to the government’s cash grant programme for the most vulnerable Ugandans, and will help address the most binding constraints to economic growth through transport infrastructure and regional economic integration programmes. Youth training, especially in northern Uganda, will continue through our northern Uganda post-conflict development programme, and in addition, we will embark on a new programme, to provide financial services to the poor, especially women.

Working with the government of Uganda and other state and non-state institutions, we will help increase value for money, transparency and accountability in the use of public funds, which are essential to underpin future growth.

To deliver this programme, the UK provisional budget for Uganda over the next four years, 2011/12 to 2014/15, will be £390 million.

I would like to emphasize that the future of UK funding to Uganda depends on the government’s commitment to tackle corruption and ensure that money is used for its intended purpose and with maximum efficiency. Going forward, we will pay closer attention to the way resources are used, how they are accounted for, and what outcomes they achieve.

Around the world, we will work with fewer countries, where we believe our assistance can have the greatest impact.

We will do more to provide the building blocks of a better life: sufficient food, clean drinking water, basic healthcare, and education. We will do more to create economic growth and jobs, working with the private sector to create opportunity.

We will tackle poverty and insecurity in some of the world’s most unstable places. Development can help tackle the root causes of global problems such as disease, drugs, migration, terrorism, and climate change, which matter to all of us.

Over the next four years British aid will make a real difference to millions more lives. We will vaccinate more children against preventable diseases than there are people in the whole of England; we will save the lives of 50,000 women in pregnancy and childbirth; we will stop 250,000 newborn babies from dying needlessly; we will secure schooling for 11 million children – more than we educate in the UK but at 2.5% of the cost and we will provide access to safe drinking water and improved sanitation to more people than there are in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

As part of this global review of aid, we have also taken a hard look at the value for money offered by international organisations such as the World Bank and the United Nations. No-one doubts the importance of such organisations to the effort to fight poverty. But we know that they are not all equally effective. The United Kingdom will no longer provide funding to organisations which do not deliver – instead directing more of our aid to those which do, and pushing them to deliver even more.

Above all, we will be relentless in providing value for money and achieving results. That matters because we need to be able to show our taxpayers that we are delivering with their money, and because we need to ensure that every pound of our aid has the maximum impact for the people we are trying to help. That is why I have introduced a new Aid Transparency Guarantee, and set up an independent aid watchdog. I believe that the United Kingdom is leading the way on aid transparency, and I am encouraging others to join us in this effort.

Aid spent well has the power to improve millions of lives. I am proud of what British aid is achieving, and I sincerely believe that working together, we have an opportunity to transform the life chances of millions of people around the world.

Museveni swear-in to cost Shs30b

Posted Thursday, March 31 2011 at 00:00

The May 12 presidential swearing-in ceremony will cost taxpayers at least Shs30 billion, according to a supplementary budget tabled in Parliament yesterday.

The money for the one-day event is part of the Shs151.6 billion needed by the government in both recurrent, statutory and development expenditures to meet unexpected spending pressures.

The budget
Tabled by the State Minister for Finance, Ms Ruth Nankabirwa, the supplementary budget will cater for the office of the President (Shs3 billion), the Ministry of Public Service (Shs56.5 billion) and the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development (Shs92 billion).

A total supplementary of Shs56.5 billion will cater for pension payments of teachers, general civil service and military service staff.

Another Shs92 billion is an additional funding for the construction of Mutundwe Thermal Power plant.

Ms Nankabirwa said the funds provided by the World Bank for the construction of the plant were not enough.

The construction of the 50MW power plant is expected to cost Shs251 billion.

The tabled supplementary budget comes only two months after the Parliament passed a Shs600 billion budget which opposition politicians suspected was for funding the NRM campaigns.
It also comes ahead of another awaited supplementary budget for financing the purchase of fighter jets and other military hardware estimated at $740 million (about Shs1.7trillion).

The new Shs151.6 billion supplementary budget comes after Parliament controversially approved a Shs602.5 billion budget in the middle of preparations for the February 18 general elections.
The opposition and civil society condemned the act, alleging that the money would be used to campaign for President Museveni and bribe voters. The ruling NRM party has since denied the allegations.

There was no debate on the new supplementary budget. Speaker Edward Ssekandi forwarded the matter to the Budget Committee where MPs will decide on whether to accept or reject the new government request for additional resources. The committee is expected to demand the details of the Shs30 billion needed for Museveni’s swearing-in ceremony.

Vice President Gilbert Bukenya cleared of CHOGM fund

Friday 1 April 2011
Vice President Gilbert Bukenya and three other ministers were yesterday cleared after a one-sided House voted in favour of a motion to forgive them on charges of abuse of office and causing financial loss during Chogm.

As the opposition walked out, accusing Speaker Edward Ssekandi of bias and protesting collective pardon of the culprits, the NRM MPs cleared senior Ministers Sam Kutesa (Foreign Affairs), John Nasasira (Works) and Attorney General Khiddu Makubuya of any wrongdoing.

The move, however, did not go down well with some NRM party members who castigated the Speaker and colleagues for helping suspects escape justice.

Apologetic Ssekikubo
“We apologise to the chairman of the party and the President who stood out unequivocally on matter of accountability...and fellow countrymen particularly for this dark evening where Parliament has been mobbed and conducted an omnibus exoneration of culprits,” said Lwemiyaga MP Theodore Ssekikubo.

The four ministers join their colleagues Amama Mbabazi (Security) and Fred Omach (State Finance) who were pardoned last year. The motion to exonerate Kutesa, Nasasira and Makubuya was moved by the Government Chief Whip, Mr Daudi Migereko.
Mr Ssekikubo attempted to block it but Speaker Ssekandi put the matter to vote as other NRM MPs shouted him down.

The drama began earlier when the acting Leader of Opposition, Mr Kassiano Wadri, stopped Mr Ssekandi from placing the question to the House to clear Prof. Bukenya.
The proposal to clear Prof. Bukenya even before the report was debated was mooted by MPs Chris Baryomunsi (Kanungu East) and Sanjay Tana (Tororo Municipality).
But Aruu County MP Odonga Otto made a case for incriminating Prof. Bukenya, saying he had conspired to misuse public funds in the Chogm car deal.

“The Chogm cars were washed for 15 days at Shs150,000 per day as if they were using champagne or mineral water. However, big-bellied you’re, you cannot eat a lorry of matooke,” said Mr Otto, who also asked President Museveni to drop corruption suspects in his new Cabinet.

The Chogm report found Prof. Bukenya guilty of influencing the award of a controversial Shs9.4b deal to provide cars for Chogm. But as the opposition MPs led by PAC Chairman Nandala Mafabi put up a spirited fight to nail the ministers, Mr Ssekandi said:
“We cannot take wrong decisions because the country will be unhappy. People won’t judge us because we didn’t satisfy their emotions. The other day you failed to bring evidence against ministers. We are not a court, what you need to discuss is whether it was a personal decision or a decision of the committee.”

Before the Speaker, whom the opposition said was steering the House like a “mercenary” could ask whether Prof. Bukenya should be exonerated, Mr Wadri informed him that they were walking out.

Mr Wadri said the opposition walk-out was in protest of NRM’s use of numbers to let suspects off the hook. “As long as the Chogm report appears on the Order Paper, we shall not return to Parliament,” Mr Wadri said. “We have taken the matter to the public court. The trend at which the NRM was debating the report was winner-takes-it all. They were relying on their numbers and not evidence.”

The NRM MPs, who accused their opposition colleagues of trying to score political marks, went on to pardon all the ministers. Only Kampala Woman MP nabilah Ssempala (FDC) stayed in the House, saying constituents had interest in the matter.
Debate continues on Tuesday next week.

PAC to grill defence over fighter jets

Tuesday, March 29 2011 at 00:00

Top officials in the Ministry of Defence will be questioned by the Public Accounts Committee today about a controversial purchase of fighter jets and other military hardware. While ministry officials were supposed to answer audit queries for the years 2008 and 2009, the committee took a decision to demand explanations on a $740m (about Shs1.7tr) deal they say was sealed behind their back.

PAC chairperson Nandala Mafabi said: “We have information that the Accounting Officer in the Ministry of Defence was aware of this scandalous expenditure. We read in papers that the money was clandestinely picked from Bank of Uganda and now they want to get retrospective authority.” He added: “We don’t want to know the types of jets and military hardware because that could be their classified information. What we want is why they never budgeted for this money and why this deal was sealed without the knowledge of Parliament.”

Museveni asks MPs
The deal was exposed by President Museveni during the Thursday night meeting with the NRM Parliamentary Caucus at State House Entebbe. Sources told Sunday Monitor that the President asked the MPs to support a Shs1.7 trillion supplementary budget to pay for the jets and other military hardware.

Although Mr Museveni did not name the country where the jets would be purchased, Russians have declared the transaction in their defence news website showing that Algeria purchased 16 jets at the same time as Uganda’s six and the joint price was $1.2 billion, meaning each jet cost $54.55 million and Uganda spent $327 million (about Shs752.1 billion).

The revelation has angered opposition lawmakers and other sections of the public. In separate statements issued yesterday, civil society groups condemned the move coming on the heel of economic drawback, with the country suffering from inflation that has commodity prices hiked.

Civil society cry out
“It’s shameful that the government is asking for Shs1.7 trillion to buy jets when people are dying of hunger,” a statement by Executive Director, Water-for-Life Uganda, Mr Ishaa Otto, said. Anti-Corruption Coalition Uganda Executive Director, Ms Cissy Kagaba, said: “Failing to have priorities in the wake of rising food prices, it’s ironical and absurd that a government which claims to be pro-people can spend colossal sums with total disregard to its people’s needs.”

Opposition MPs say they will block the approval in public interest even though they lack the numbers in the House. Army spokesman Lt. Col. Felix Kulayigye justified the expenditure, saying, “The country needs security. We cannot defend our country by prayers. Those criticising the purchase don’t know the strategic management of defence.”