By Muhumuza Jimmy
Parliament
The parliamentary committee on Trade, industry, and Trade has been shocked after learning that ministers do not know the ministry is being run after the ministers confessed that they were receiving new information from the committee about how the ministry is run.
The committee has invited the ministers of trade led by their senior minister Francis Mwebesa to brief them on how the ministry is being mismanaged by the technical persons who seem to be more powerful than the minister.
The committee chairperson who is also the Mbarara city South MP Mwine Mpaka revealed to the ministers the ministry was allocated 8bn shillings to shift the ministry offices which the permanent secretary used for renovation but has failed to account for.
According to Mpaka Eng Deo Byaruhanga one of the ministry employees withdrew money from the fuel card is possessing and paid 2M shillings for fuel for each trip for the vehicle that transported the ministry documents from farmers’ house Kampala to Entebe during the renovation of the ministry premises in Kampala.
The committee chair also revealed that other employees including Rosemary Asiimwe, Nelson Balyejusa who was a senior accountant, and Everest Ahimbisibwe signed 362M from their illegal fuel cards.
Mpaka also noted that the ministry paid over 108M shillings to footstep furniture to supply the ministry furniture in June 2021 but they have never supplied the furniture.
Mpaka added that they have tried as a committee to look for accountability of the 8bn shillings but they haven’t traced the balance of 2.8bn shillings of the said money.
This shocked the ministers who noted that they fuel their cars out of their pockets yet the ministry is allocated over 800M shillings for fuel which is consumed by the personal assistants and other technical officers in the ministry.
The minister for the trade industry and cooperative Francis Mwebesa noted that is going to sue the government to refund his fuel.
The state minister for trade David Bahati noted that they are going to consult the head of the public service and the appointing authority for a way forward.
Nakifuma County MP Fred Ssimbwa, Bukomansimbi South MP Geoffrey Kayemba Solo, and Busujju County MP David Lukyamuzi Kalwanga wondered how the ministers failed to do their job.
