Opinion: The President spends around a billion shillings a day for the remaining days of the Financial Year…

The 2^nd Supplementary Budget of 2021-22, which is scheduled now in May 2022, as the end of the Financial Year is soon ending. The FY 2021-22 is only ending on the 30^th June, as the next Financial Year is starting on the 1^st July 2022. On that date start the FY 2022-23. Therefore, it must be something significant for the state to suddenly spend lavishly in the end of a financial year.

The Supplementary Budget which was voted on recently gave the State House 77 billion shilling in additional funds for “Classified Expenditure”. This is happening days before President tells his citizens to buy “less” and “survive”. As the state isn’t able or it isn’t capable of subsidising or cut taxes on basic commodities, as the prices are rising in the Republic. However, the same state can spend a billion shilling a day on the “classified expenditure” for his august State House.

The President can spend a billion shilling a day just on the supplementary budget. That is not taking into the account the already allocated funds to the State House Budget in the FY 2021-22 or the first supplementary budget, which most likely also had additional funds towards the State House. If not there is plenty of funds allocated and directed to the Office of the President. He has enough options and means to spend vast fortunes on a regular basis.

The latest is just a simple fact of how his beyond redemption. A man who speaks of being a revolutionary, but acts like a kingpin. A man who speaks of surviving and living within our means, but he himself has all the monies of the world. The State House and the President can buy whatever it wants at any given time. The State House can imports, buy and trade whatever it deems fit. It has the budgets and the sudden additional funds to do so. It is a huge enterprise and a growing money tree.

The State House has only by the latest budget a 1 billion shillings a day to spend and that isn’t even covering every single day. The State House would still have funds to spare and use. This just shows how reckless and how how the President is using money like no tomorrow. He might claim it’s for development and other projects. However, what results does it have or what purpose? Why not let other agencies, state enterprises or even ministries directly steer these funds?

We all know why… the President wants to be implicated and directly part of all pieces of the state. That’s why his directives goes into all portfolios and all parts of government. He wants to have a say and order as well.

That’s why his spending like a drunk sailor on himself, but speaking of frugality to anyone else. His office and State House gets huge slush-funds, classified expenditure and whatever else he points at. He can claim it is to save someone in the up-country, but everyone knows it is being eaten mostly by himself. His getting a big convoy, having over 130 Presidential Advisors and whatever else he see fit.

If you believe a man who needs a billion shillings day to live. That his the guy to lecture you about living a simple life. You are being lectured by the wrong guy. The guy who is living hand-to-mouth and selling New Visions on the streets of Kampala can explain how that life works. However, a President who spends more than any other soul of the Republic.

Well, he isn’t the guy to speak of living frugal. No, his the guy to listen to when you want to buy Evian or import expensive relics to his State House. Peace.

What’s up doc? A brief look into Parliament Report on PRESIDE and the mismanagement of COVID-I9 funds in the Republic

“I like the unfortunate phenomenon of western countries halting exportation of the COVID19 vaccine until all their citizens are fully vaccinated. This will enable Africans to wake up and manufacture their own medicines. I like the bad things because Africans sleep too much, I have never believed in dependency. This selfishness in the world is bad but it’s a shame that the whole of the African continent is asleep waiting to be saved by others… In the short run, we shall see who can sell COVID19 vaccines to us. As far as Uganda is concerned, I assure you, we will never again be in such a situation, we are making our own vaccine” – President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni (27.06.2021).

Another day, another Parliament Report exposing the rot of the Government. A government that isn’t follow the laws, codes and protocols of the republic. Direct Presidential Directives which have no barring and to ambition to be achieved. Neither was there anywhere close to be legit research or able to fulfil it’s mission.

The State House and Ministries clearly miscalculated their abilities and the promise of the project. Neither did it have the scientists or the manpower to do it. There was not enough time or enough research spaces to make it happen. The budgets was to slim and there was also spending unaccounted for. A sort of troubling project, which is meant to fail. A spending spree without any accountability or transparency. A money pit without without any sort of proof of value for money. The PRESIDE and associated projects was bound to fail. The Parliamentary reports published today is called: “REPORT OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION ON COVID-19 RELATED RESEARCH FOR FY 2019/20 TO FY 202/22”.

This report is a story of how a President and the State House directs, implement and execute without proper planning or direction for that matter. It is just headache and shows what sort of enterprise the whole COVID-19 vaccine programme PRESIDE was and that’s why the quotes of this report is so explicit.

It is a total utter failure and the President is implicated it, as it is his directive and run directly from the State House. This wasn’t a Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MOFPED) or Ministry of Health. No, this was an affair out of the State House and shows how it goes. Done without being bound by law or done correctly. That’s why this was bound to fail, which it did.

Just read these quotes from the report to get the gist:

“In his statement, he indicated that up to UGX. 20bn had been drawn from the consolidated fund for scientists under PRESIDE to manufacture a COVID-I9 vaccine and an additional UGX. 50bn was drawn on 2021 for PRESIDE, and yet supervising Ministry (Ministry of Science, Technolory and Innovation) had been disbanded. He further questioned the legality of the Presidential Scientific Initiative on Epidemics (PRESIDE), queried its staffing, operations and whether its premises in Ntinda that had no laboratories would be able to produce a vaccine” (May 2022 report).

“Overall funding for COVID- 19 research was as follows:

– UGX. 5.3bn for PRESIDE FY 2019/20

– UGX. 31.03bn for projects under PRESIDE, UGX. 3.35bn for PRESIDE secretariat operations, and UGX. 2.74bn under NRIP in FY2020/2l

– UGX. 25bn for project operations, a supplementary request of UGX. 50.4bn for a manufacturing plant and UGX. 27bn for additional operational funds for PRESIDE projects in FY 2021/22” (May 2022 report).

“A total of (seventeen) 17 projects (Project l-17) was presented before Parliament with a total budget of UGX. 25bn, for implementation in FY2021/22. When additional funds of UGX. 27bn became available through a supplementary budget, the total number of projects raised to 27, where 10 new projects (Projects 18-27) were introduced and two of the already approved projects i.e. (projects 6 (Immune Therapy – Convalescent plasma). and 14 (Herbal Products for Management of COVID-19) were dropped. The Committee found that the two projects should have been given funds for implementation whether there was a supplementary or not since their budgets had already been approved by Parliament in the Ministerial Policy Statement. No reasons were given for their exclusion” (May 2022 report).

“The Committee while interacting with the petitioner was informed that PRESIDE was a company formed by Dr. Monica Musenero and some of her family members including her husband. These allegations were disputed by Hon. Musenero, who informed the Committee that PRESIDE is neither an organtzation nor a company but a project under State House” (…) “However, the Committee noted that the establishment of PRESIDE violates governance rules, as it has no legal status. The initiative has not been incorporated in accordance with the laws of Uganda. Therefore it is not a legal entity. The Committee also observed from the concerned officials that no steps had been taken to have it legally established” (May 2022 report).

“Although PRESIDE was established with a visionary mandate, to be a vehicle to spear the pathogen economy, it has been mired with mismanagement, poor accountability practices and overall poor planning. At its inception, Government failed to define its legality, failed to analyze and optimize the structures that were already in place and build on these as a way of driving the pathogen economy forward. This went against the current government policy on rationalization and improvement of efficiencies within MDAs. The role of UNHRO, MoSTI, UNCST as regulators was usurped and replaced with PRESIDE which had a temporary supervisory framework in form of a MoU. With the expiry of the MoU, PRESIDE as a project remained operational yet not supervised because its Chairperson is the Minister responsible for the docket of STI and also the Special Presidential Advisor on Epidemics” (May 2022 report).

Reading a report like this is shattering. It just shows how the state is mismanaging funds and how the State House isn’t preparing things ahead. The whole PRESIDE shows how a Presidential Directive is put into life, but never able to implement, because the state doesn’t have the funds, manpower or the facilities to do it. The PRESIDE is an utter failure…

The National Resistance Movement (NRM) was all talk, but no business. They can start-up organizations and projects, but they have no plans of the implementation or protocols to ensure it is successful. PRESIDE is a proof on how not to run a project… as it has had no plan or any sort of proof that it would actually manage the mission from the on-set.

The ones that believes the NRM would be able to produce a COVID-19 vaccine was day-dreaming, because the whole PRESIDE can be seen as a nightmare. The ones running it should be ashamed and it was a waste of government funding. Nothing to show for it and only a name-tag, which runs back to the State House and the Presidential Directive. A

All of it is a waste … the President should be held to account as he ushered it in and it did nothing. They will fault everyone, but if it wasn’t for him… this mess wouldn’t exist and the report wouldn’t have been published either.

The PRESIDE should be lectured at Makerere University or something in how not to run things and be a case-study in bad-governance. This is a proof of how not to govern and nothing was done correctly. That’s why it deserve to be acknowledged and used as a learning experience. Since, the next government could do another properly and actually achieve something worthwhile. Peace.

Opinion: The State House is the most vital ministry in the Republic

Again and again, the budgets and the supplementary budgets are revealing what priorities that matters. In the recent release of the 900 billion shillings supplementary budget. The Office of the President is destined to get 168 billion and the Office of the Prime Minister gets an additional 40 billion shilling. While the Ministry of Defence and the National Army is getting 79,2 billion shillings.

That just shows the priority, we know the UPDF is stretched in the Democratic Republic of Congo and suddenly deployed in Karamoja. That got to be paid and the soldiers equipment has to be reimbursed. Therefore, the necessity of added funds there makes sense.

However, the extended and added funds on the Office of the Presidency shows how the State House can mismanage and spend like there is no tomorrow. The President has already a massive budget in the first place and this addition only shows that they cannot manage these vast funds.

They are now claiming these funds will go to scholarships for students, Kiira Motors and whatnot. It is better than other eyars to water-bills and utilities. Still, shouldn’t the Ministry of Transport and Works fund the Kiira Motors? Why is that under the Office of the Presidency? Why is the Office of the Presidency paying scholarship? Shouldn’t scholarship be under the Ministry of Education and Sports? Isn’t that wifey material … and paperwork for her to handle?

That’s why you know these Supplementary Budgets are questionable at best. This is just a measure to ensure the President has more funds for his inner-circle. The lack of oversight is clear. When the Office of the President is paying for such projects and participating in other Ministries work. The Office of the President shouldn’t be entangled into so much of the Ministries of the Government. However, it is and it shows what sort of governing the President does.

This budget is questionable and shows what is priorities. The State House and the Office of the President is getting a huge slice of the cut. That isn’t shocking, but proves what is important and what the state see as important. They rather spend money on the President than on Health Care or any other Ministry, which is lacking or not having proper budgets. That could even be said about Ministry of Education for that matter…

Therefore, President Museveni is the one who gets the funds and get to spend the way he likes. That is the message of this Supplementary Budget. Peace.

IGG Report says the Office of the President had two “papal” cars in their parking-lot since 2015…

We know that President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni is obsessed with cars or vehicles. That is why the most important gift to the government during the lockdowns in 2020 was just that. He just wanted cars and that was the solution to everything.

I just started to go through Inspectorate General of Government Report of February 2021. The first thing that caught my eye was this simple story. It is just showing how much control the State House or Office of the President has. As they can control minor things and hold it in their possession for years. This is maybe just two expensive cars for one visit. However, if they can do that to such things. What can the same authorities do with bigger and even more expensive things?

Here is the paragraph that caught my eye:

“The Office of the President entered into MOU with Ministry of Works and Transport for purchase of two vehicles for use by His Holiness the Pope during his visit to Uganda in November 2015 and provided UGX. 322,200,000 for executing the MOU. MOWT purchase a black new Kia Soul 5 door Hatchback UG2519C and a new Mitsubishi Pick Up UG2520C. The two vehicles were handed over to the President’s Office for use by MOWT after the Pope’s visit. They were found parked at the Office of the President parking yard at the time of this investigation” (IGG – ‘BI- ANNUAL INSPECTORATE OF GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE REPORT TO PARLIAMENT (JANUARY – JUNE 2020)’ P:7, February 2021).

That means the Office of the President have kept these cars since November 2015 and meaning the vehicles was still in the possession in the time of June 2020. As this report is the investigations made between January to June 2020, but published in February 2021. Therefore, the vehicles might be gone by now, but that is only matter of trust that this investigation made a difference. However, there should be a check-up on that. Because, who knows who has been using these two vehicles since the Pope Francis left Uganda?

Just imagine cars destined to be used by the Ministry of Works and Transport (MoWT) have been stationed at the wrong place for close to 5 years. They were actually parked outside the Office of the President during the investigation.

The was even questions about these cars back in 2018: “Members of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee have questioned officials in the Office of the President over the whereabouts of two cars used by Pope Francis when he visited Uganda in 2015” (NTV Uganda, 19.10.2018).

So now in February 2021 we know where they are, unless the Office of the President have actually given them back to MoWT where they were supposed to be. Nevertheless, that shows the state of affairs and how they care about expenditure of the state. When cars can just be lost for years and be on a parking-lot. If not used by the wrong authority for years. We don’t know that, but these cars was new.

That we know, because the Daily Monitor reported this in December 2015: “Joseph Ssemuwemba is the Chief Executive Officer of The Motorcenter East Africa Ltd. I found him in his office located on Plot 16 Old Portbell Road attending to his daily work. He was happy to share his experience of securing the opportunity to supply the Papal vehicle, and also the pressure that comes with such honour. “We know the Pope prefers modest transport and we have a history of the Pope having travelled in a Kia Soul while in South Korea and the interesting part here, is that this was his personal choice in Seoul, It wasn’t about government availing him any transport, it was about “of all these cars on this list what car would you like to use?” and his pick was the boxy stylish Kia Soul,” Ssemuwemba says” (Daily Monitor – ‘Pope Francis’ little black car’ 17.12.2015).

So, this isn’t a big whoop or a tragic tale, but is a story of misused fortunes and wasted funds on two cars. Where the resources are wasted and used for grandeur for a visit, but is never getting where they are intended. We don’t know what the MoWT was intending to use these cars for. However, they was supposed to be sitting in a parking-lot for all these years. Peace.

Rep. Elijah Cummings letter to Pat Cipollone to produce documents for the investigation into Security Clearance Process of Jared Kushner (01.03.2019)

MoFPED Matia Kasaija letter to All Development Partners: “Re: Clarification on the Decision of Cabinet of the Republic of Uganda Concerning the Reorganization of Government Institutions” (26.09.2018)

A new Presidential Initiative: With what budget and other plan than the launch?

We know that President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni and his State House has a free budget, where he can spend the funds as he likes. Because he got in the votes before the 2018/19 on the part of the: “11 Logistical and Administrative – Support to the Presidency” and the parts of “06 Presidential Initiatives”. That is why yesterday is special, when we know that he got 9.957 billion shillings for this budget year alone. While the Ministerial Policy Statement for this budget year wasn’t specific where these funds are going. That is why, what was launched yesterday, might be part of that, but who knows, right?

New launched initiative:

“President Yoweri Museveni launched a new Presidential Fast-Tracking Initiative on the Elimination of HIV/AIDS that targets total elimination of the scourge from the Uganda by 2030. He used the occasion to remind Ugandans in general and those devoted to the fight against the scourge that the struggle to eliminate HIV/AIDS from our society should focus more on preventive measures because the pandemic is avoidable. Speaking during the launch of the initiative at Isingiro District headquarters in Isingiro Town Council, the President said that because AIDS has no known cure to-date, Ugandans need to focus on how to avoid contracting the virus which, he said, is the only sure way the virus can be eliminated from the Ugandan society. The ceremony attracted representatives from 28 districts if South Western Uganda” (National Resistance Movement, 20.10.2018).

This proves that some of the money goes somewhere. However, in the statement from the President and the NRM. There are no statements on how much is spent on the initiative, how many who will work with it or even the organization behind it. The President has budgeted funds fro the Presidential Initiatives, however, there are no allocations to where that goes. Especially not in the Ministerial Policy Statement and in the documents proving the voting.

It would have been good knowing to what extent this is or if its just a public stunt? Because it is noble fight to eliminate HIV/AIDS. We should still wonder where and how the funding for this are. Since it is public spending and supposed to do something. If it is printing pamphlets, posters and TV-ads. We don’t know, if this is a public campaign or something to inform the Ministry of Health and ensure less people get the HIV/AIDS. Who knows right?

That is what we should wonder about and how the monies is spent. It is a good idea, but good to know the reality of the initiative itself. Peace.

To All Stakeholders: UNRA remains committed to its mandate (15.09.2018)

Solicitor General letter to UNRA: Sector Support Project v RSSVP Lot 1 – Civil Works for Upgrading of Rukungiri Kihihi-Ishasha / Kanungu Road (78,5km) to Bituminous Standard (14.09.2018)

Opinion: If the Cabinet scraps NMS and UNRA, what about the weird expenditures at the Presidential Affairs?

As the giant Cabinet of the Republic are planning to scrap Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) and National Medical Stores (NMS), that these are going back into their ministries. Because of how these two organizations has supposed wasted government funds and spending. The National Resistance Movement (NRM) knows the ordeal and the reasons for that, but they are instead scrapping the organizations, to keep the deals in-house and not as sole organization doing the operations as expert organizations for the government. That is why this will go back to Ministry of Works and Transport for UNRA and Ministry of Health for NMS. I have one more vital idea for the Cabinet members, but don’t expect them to so.

Today’s news:

“The Cabinet has taken a decision to scrap Uganda National Roads Authority (UNRA) and National Medical Stores and transfer their mandate to the mother ministries to reduce wastage of resources. According to a source, the decision was taken in two meetings with the first held on August 20 and the last one on Monday last week. The source said President Museveni was unhappy with the UNRA performance, especially in the rural areas where roads are impassable yet it is where majority of votes for his NRM party are” (Andrew Bagala – ‘UNRA to be scrapped in merger of government agencies’ 03.09.2018 link: http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/UNRA-to-be-scrapped-merger-government-agencies/688334-4740804-qvrsbnz/index.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter_DailyMonitor).

As these ideas are noble, but we know the reasons in itself. More direct control and cannot use the organizations as faults for the corrupt, graft and embezzlement anymore. The Cabinet are thinking this will stop this, but they are just making sure the deals and agreements made with tenders and buying, will be happening in-house and not by experts in the same regard as today. That is the real reaction to what is happening with this.

My advise would be find ways to merger and move responsibility from the Office of the President, State House and Office of the Prime Minister. As these could be moved to their representative ministries, as the Youth Livelihood Programme should end elsewhere. The budgets for the Residential District Commissioners are put under the President, this should be put Minister of Local Government and not under the President.

Like what does the budget of Internal Security Organization and External Security Organization lay under neath Office of the President, as this should be under the Ministry of Internal Affairs or Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

As well as all the development expenditure that is parts of the Office of the President and Office of the Prime Minister. Both of these should have been put under fitting expertise of certain ministries, as the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Education and Sports, Ministry of Works and Transport and so on. As well, as the ones fitting Ministry of Internal Affairs and Ministry of Internal Affairs. All these ministries could have connected these projects under the State House, Office of the President and Office of the Prime Minister.

Like what does the Uganda AIDS Commission does under the Office of the President, shouldn’t this be under the Ministry of Health? Why does the Office of the Prime Minister have the Disaster Preparedness and not the Ministry of Internal Affairs or the Ministry of Local Government?

This is just what I wonder about, because, if the Cabinet is serious about scrapping UNRA and NMS, why are not the government looking into the weird expenditures at the Office of the Prime Minister, State House or even the Office of the President?

They should really ask and wonder. If they are not doing this as a political stunt, as we know how corrupt these enterprises are, but will it make a difference to cut out the middle-man? Peace.