Mbale city officials ordered to refund over sh60m in salary overpayments

MBALE - The Inspectorate of Government (IG) has directed the Mbale city town clerk to recover shillings 66.5 million irregularly paid to 20 officials following payroll mismanagement.

In a statement dated March 5, 2026, the IG says the directive followed investigations conducted by its regional office in Mbale into anomalies in the city payroll.

According to the IG, the affected officials received irregular salary payments amounting to shillings 66.5 million between the financial years 2022/2023 and 2024/2025.

The IG directed that the money be deposited on the Inspectorate of Government Assets Recovery account held at the Bank of Uganda.

According to the IG, during interviews with investigators, the 20 officials reportedly admitted receiving the excess payments, saying the funds were used for personal purposes.

They, however, expressed willingness to refund the money.

Mbale city human resource officer Abdu Higenyi attributed the irregular payments to system migration challenges.

He explained that errors first occurred in July 2022 when the Government enhanced salaries for science teachers and implemented new salary scales, resulting in a mix-up that led to overpayments.

He added that in June 2025, when Mbale city migrated from the Integrated Personnel and Payroll System to the Human Capital Management System, similar errors were registered, leading to further excess payments.

The IG has since tasked the Town Clerk to ensure full recovery of the funds.