By Joel Kafuko
Civil society organizations have asked President Yoweri Museveni to consider restructuring the office of the Prime Minister to combat the increasing levels of corruption involved in this office.
According to Xavier Ejoyi, the country director for Action Aid International Uganda, the Office of the Prime Minister is too intricate and yet conflicted to even play its oversight role to other government Ministries, agencies and departments, which calls for restructuring.
The Office of the Prime Minister of Uganda has thirteen full and State Ministers including those superintending over Special Interest Groups. These include the Prime Minister and the three Deputies, Minister for General Duties, Minister for Relief Disaster Preparedness and Refugees with A State Minister, Government Chief Whip.
Others are Minister for Karamoja Affairs with a state minister and four other state ministers for Special Interest Groups including for Northen Uganda, Teso Region, Buyonyo Affairs and Luweero Traingle with huge Budget allocation every Financial Year hence attracting corruption tendencies that the country has witnessed over the years with the Karamoja Region bound Iron Sheets and Goats being the latest corruption scandal.
This scandal has since attracted criticism from different people castigating the Minister of Karamoja Affairs Mary Gorreti Kitutu for mismanaging the thousands of iron sheets meant for the poverty stricken Karamoja region.
The corruption scandal of iron sheets which involves senior Cabinet Ministers including, Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja, First Deputy Premier and Minister for East African Affairs Rebecca Kadaga, Finance Minister Matia Kasaija among other top Ministers continues to draw criticism from different people.
Reacting to the scandal, Action Aid Country Director Xavier Ejoyi noted what is unfolding in the office of the prime minister is not only disturbing but a big shame to the entire country.
Ejoyi further notes that the Office of the Prime Minister is “Over-crowded” that even playing its oversight role is proving a problem.
He says it is high time this office is restructured for improved function and service delivery.
Marlon Agaba the Executive Director of the Anti-Corruption Coalition Uganda says that in order for the OPM to execute its cardinal Mandate, some ministries like the one for Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees together with that of Karamoja Affairs which look to be relevant ought to be autonomous and the rest be disbanded completely for they no longer appear to be relevant except for being political tools.
Anti-graft agencies also suggest that this is yet another opportunity for the office of inspectorate of the government to prove itself to fully investigate and implicate the culprits.
In addition to the CSOs, legislators from the Karamoja sub-region have on several occasions come out and condemned the officials involved. They want every one of them reprimanded.
The Inspector General of Government (IGG) Beti Olive Kamya has since taken up the investigation and the Speaker of Parliament ,Anita Among who was initially also mentioned among the beneficiaries directed the Presidential Affairs Committee to carry out an inquiry into the matter and report back in one month.
Information obtained from OPM indicates that in the financial year 2021/2022, the department of Karamoja Affairs obtained a supplementary budget to support the peace and disarmament exercise in the sub-region and part of the budget was spent to procure iron sheets. More than 95,000 iron sheets were procured out of which 25,514 were released and 71,144 remained in store.
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