THE Inspector General of Government (IGG), Faith Mwondha, has asked all leaders to declare their wealth by March 31, or be dismissed.
The deadline was given in a January 5 notice to leaders listed in the Second Schedule of the Leadership Code Act.
The leaders include the President, vice-president, Speaker and Deputy Speaker of Parliament, the Prime Minister and his deputies, Attorney General, ministers, MPs, Movement Secretariat chiefs and LC officials.
Others are judges, magistrates, permanent secretaries, presidential advisers, ambassadors and high commissioners, UPDF officers, RDCs, CAOs and heads of district department.
The IGG’s spokesperson, Martin Okumu, said the Leadership Code Act of 2002 and Chapter 14 of the Constitution required public officers to declare their wealth every two years. He said the first declarations were in 2003.
“We are concurrently doing verification of the first declarations. We must check what they declared is true that is when we can know their worth,” he said.
He said out of over 1,000 declaration forms sent out, about 500 were returned. “This time the response is good but I am not sure how many will have declared by March 31. Even last year the response was good, about 95% except people like Kakooza Mutale (presidential adviser),” he said.
Mwondha said, “The penalty for failure to declare income, assets and liabilities is dismissal or vacation of office.”
She said a leader who knowingly or recklessly submits a declaration or gives an account of any matter, which is false, misleading or insufficient, breaks the code.
Okumu said he was not sure whether President Museveni had sent his second declaration forms.
“I am sure he will declare by March 31. We have no problem with him. Last time he declared cattle in Mbarara, his farm at Kisozi in Mpigi and other assets,” he said.
He said the IGG was running advertisements in the media, reminding leaders to file declarations.
