ICT Ministry, UBC face sh390m audit query

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Office of the President permanent secretary, Haji Yunus Kakande, has ordered the accounting officer of the information ministry to explain unaccounted-for funds flagged by the Auditor General.

“The auditors, having reviewed your accountabilities, recommended that the accounting officer should follow up with entities where funds were not accounted for and ensure that these accountabilities are provided to Parliament for necessary action,” Kakande directed.

The monies are in relation to the 19th Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and G77+China summits Uganda hosted in January 2024.

It should be remembered that the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) took place from January 19-20, 2024, while the Group of 77 countries + China third summit followed suit from January 21-22 of the same year.

Ps Kakande letter to ICT ministry. (Courtesy)

Kakande issued the directive in a letter dated February 12, 2025, seen by New Vision Online. The development followed the release of the Auditor General’s report for the financial year ending June 2024.

Total budget

Documents show that the Government had a total budget for the two events of sh61.731b, which was availed in its entirety.

Out of this, sh5.064b was spent on classified activities, including

• Internal Security Organisation (ISO): Sh898m
• Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs (MODVA): Sh100m
• Uganda Police Force: Sh3.7b
• Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control (DCIC): Sh320m

Balance

From the remaining sh56.667b, a total of sh53.65b was reported as accounted for as follows;

• Office of the President: Sh30.414b
• State House and Special Forces Command (SFC): Sh5.364b
• Civil Aviation Authority (CAA): Sh393m
• Ministry of Health: Sh140m
• Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development: Sh140m
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Sh8.356b
• Uganda Broadcasting Corporation (UBC): Sh243m
• Ministry of Works and Transport: Sh8.304b
• Wakiso District: Sh300m

According to the Office of the President undersecretary, Emmanuel Walani, the funds allocated to the State House and the Special Forces Command (SFC) were tied to their role in the summit’s accommodation and deployment efforts.

“In general terms, the State House chairs the accommodation subcommittee but also has aspects of the security subcommittee. They spend money which is non-classified, especially on meals, men and women who are deployed at the various venues,” Walani said.

“We paid them each sh11,000 per day they were on duty. This is part of that budget. That is why it is excluded from the classified expenditure,” he added. 

Audit query

However, by the time of compilation of the AG’s report, a balance of sh3.013b was unaccounted for. This figure comprised sh2.623b, which had been allocated to the Ministry of Works and Transport.

Of this, sh58.8m was concerning unspent balances with no evidence of return to the Consolidated Fund, sh1.29b in expenditures where procurement processes did not comply with PPDA regulations, sh12.3m in payments without proof that withholding tax was deducted.

Lastly, sh1.26m was tied to unsupported fuel expenditures.

On the other hand, the information ministry and UBC failed to account for sh390m. The amount comprised sh95.8m in non-compliant procurements, sh14.2m in expenditures without evidence of withholding tax deductions, sh219m in spending lacking supporting documents and sh60.6m in unaccounted cash payments.

MPs react

Muwanga Kivumbi, committee chair. (Photo by Miriam Namutebi)

Relatedly, on Wednesday, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC-Central), chaired by Butambala MP Muhammad Muwanga Kivumbi, doubled down on the Ministry of Works and Transport to explain the unaccounted funds.

Sarah Opendi, Tororo woman MP. (Photo by Miriam Namutebi)

This followed explanations from ministry officials who claimed that, at the time of the audit report's compilation, payment documents were still being processed, and that the funds had since been returned to the Consolidated Fund.

(Photo by Miriam Namutebi)

Speaking on condition of anonymity, an official acknowledged that while it is true the unspent balance stood at sh58m at the time of the audit, there was an ongoing requisition of sh17m, which was completed on December 18, 2024.

This brought the final unspent balance to sh41m. They attributed the unspent funds to a variance between estimated costs and actual prices, and confirmed that the remaining amount has since been returned to the Treasury.

“They need to convince us beyond a reasonable doubt that I should not send them to CID straightaway. That’s how grave this matter is,” Muwanga stated.

“In the interest of time, I don’t think there is much we can cover. We shall form an opinion after going through all of them,” he warned.