Angry Bukenya attacks CHOGM probe

By Cyprian Musoke

VICE-President Prof. Gilbert Bukenya yesterday lost his temper as the parliamentary committee investigating the CHOGM expenditure questioned him over his role.

Initially, he appeared composed, laughed and chatted with the MPs but became angry as the questioning intensified.

He started by giving the CHOGM time lines while sipping a cup of coffee.
He then lashed out at the MPs, journalists and the Auditor General, John Muwanga, whom he accused of picking on him.

Muwanga for the first time attended the proceedings.
The investigation was ordered by President Yoweri Museveni after the Auditor General published a report that the CHOGM bill had jumped from sh270b to sh400b. The probe committee now fears the cost may reach sh500b.

Appearing before the MPs yesterday, Bukenya had to be restrained as he attacked journalists whom he described as “uneducated and uninformed”. He also accused them of writing ill of him. The MPs warned him about his “unparliamentary language”.

Bukenya also accused committee chairman Nandala Mafabi of not responding to his correspondences and of telling the press that the committee had given him a “last chance”.
He was referring to his failure to appear before the committee twice.

Bukenya attacked newspapers of saying he had gone into hiding. “Hiding behind who?” Bukenya wondered. “Tomorrow they will write: ‘Bukenya was grilled’. Can you show me where I have been grilled,” he asked, putting off his coat.

Elijah Okupa (FDC) reminded him it was un-parliamentary for him to undress.

But Bukenya was not yet done. He said when he accepted to face the committee, the media wrote that he had made a U-turn.

“I can survive anywhere. If I flew to Iceland or America, I can survive. But they wrote that I am going to be prosecuted.”

Mafabi accused Bukenya of failing to honour several appointments and preferring to correspond with the Speaker. He said this left the committee with no option but to meet the President and close the matter.

Bukenya said he did not refuse to meet the committee despite the Attorney General’s advice that he was not “summonable”.

The focus of the questions was why Bukenya authorised sh13.9b for Munyonyo Commonwealth Resort, his role in the sh9b procurement of the BMW cars, and why the road to his Garuga Hotel was graded using CHOGM funds.
The works minister, John Nasasira, has been questioned over the road.

Bukenya protested the accusations. “My home is off the road by almost two kilometres. That road is for everybody. All of you in your constituencies have roads which you ask to be done. I am not aware that Nasasira used CHOGM money.”

Bukenya then angrily asked the MPs: “But so what if I asked him to do it? Aren’t I the Vice-President of Uganda? Isn’t this our government and party? I host leaders at my home. Most of you have been there. Did you want to walk through bush to the Vice-President’s place?”

Bukenya asked the Auditor Genera why he did not point out other big people who also own properties on the road. “You are being picky. Did you go to the area and assess where my house is? I don’t want pickies,” he said.

Earlier, Bukenya had said he was proud of chairing the sub-committee that organised “the most successful CHOGM in Sub-Saharan Africa”.

He said the procurement rules were waived to beat the tight deadline, and that procurement officers were to ensure value for money while his role stopped at policy guidelines.
“I was obsessed with time management. This was a specific event of a time-bound nature.”

Bukenya said permanent secretaries advised them on technical issues and that they relied mainly on the Blue Book, the manual for CHOGM. He said in July 2006, the Cabinet sub-committee halted the open bidding because of time shortage and opted for purchase of the cars.

In October 2006, he added, a decision was taken to reduce the number of executive cars from 240 to 204. Still, the finance ministry had no money to buy the cars but to lease them.

“At this point, we were also debating whether to use government cars. I had got a warning from the Ministry of Works that we would need eight months to order and get new cars,” he said.

The President, Bukenya added, chaired the final meeting that decided to purchase 30 vehicles and lease the rest. Meeting the MPs last week, Museveni said he approved the deals in principle, but he was not responsible for the implementation.

Bukenya presented a letter in which he ordered procurement officers to start negotiations, and another in which he asked them to negotiate with BMW, which had accepted the lease offer.

“We had fifteen weeks left. This delay cost us money because the cars were airlifted instead of shipped.”

Bukenya said they purchased 30, leased 52 BMWs and 62 station wagons. He urged the the MPs to consider the cost of servicing and maintaining the vehicles one of which recently cost sh20m to service after a trip to Jinja.

He also said the marina and walkways at Munyonyo were approved to ease evacuation in case of emergency.

Lead counsel Tom Kazibwe wondered how the sub-committee decided to hire one company when others like Toyota and Benz had bid for the lease.

The MPs also wondered who was responsible for the delay. Nandala accused Bukenya of appointing the procurement unit and of writing to them to “expeditiously” undertake the purchase.

“Did you know that by doing so you participated in the procurement process?” asked Oduman Okello.
In reply, Bukenya said he was simply putting in place an emergency system since only four months were left to the event.

Theodore Ssekikubo (NRM) urged Bukenya to name the people who delayed the process. “They led you into a narrow bend from which you couldn’t escape,” he said.
Bukenya admitted: “I was worried and asked why the process was so slow.”

Claver Mutuluza (NRM) asked why the Government paid 74% of the cost of the vehicles that were used for only four days. “Did your technical team take trouble to know the international leasing rates?” he wondered.

Bukenya replied that the vehicles came earlier and left later. Nandala, however, said even if it was a month, the Government was supposed to pay only 20% of the cost for leasing the cars.

Drama erupted when Aruu MP Odonga Otto tried to read out the PPDA Act that prescribes a jail term for government officials who flout it. Bukenya interjected angrily: “I will go there with you (to jail).”