Sack UIA board - MPs

By Joyce Namutebi and Henry Sekanjako

Parliament has recommended that the board of directors and top management of Uganda Investment Authority (UIA) be disbanded and reconstituted.

This recommendation is contained in the report of the standing committee on commissions, statutory authorities and state enterprises on UIA presented to Parliament by Kumi MP Patrick Amuriat last Thursday.

The recommendations were made after the committee examined audited accounts of the authority from December 31, 2002 to December 31, 2011 and found irregularities and mismanagement of funds during the period under review.

The legislators called for disbandment of the current board and its replacement with “a new and demonstrated-ably effective board.” They further asked for reconstitution of “top management of UIA using a professional recruitment and selection process.”

The board is chaired by Patrick Bitature while the executive director is Eng. Frank Ssebowa, who replaced Dr. Maggie Kigozi.

The MPs recommended that the trade ministry should supervise UIA instead of the finance ministry. They argued that UIA’s key activities fall under the domain of the trade ministry.

The MPs further recommended that the Government should put in place an industrial park policy and all the enabling laws to operationalise it, saying its absence has left the authority “with a situation of using chits and directives from senior political leaders as the basis to purchase as well as allocating the land.”

On purchase of 150 acres of land in Kashari Mbarara for industrial park purposes, the committee noted that this did not receive the required approval of the UIA board.

The committee called for a value-formoney audit on the Kiwanga-Namanve electricity way leaves compensation.