Parliament wants audit on mismanagement of NIRA

Investigation 

Parliament has ordered the Auditor General to investigate mismanagement at the National Identification Registration Authority (NIRA).

Parliament said Auditor General John Muwanga should look into the allegations that have led to the unsatisfactory issuance of National Identity cards, especially under the learners project.

The Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, said Muwanga should as well carry out a forensic audit into the procurement process that awarded the defence ministry the contract to let out its premises at Kololo independence grounds to NIRA.

This followed a report of the defence and internal affairs committee presented by Moses Nagwomu, indicating that during their investigations, NIRA management claimed it was parting with sh56m monthly to pay rent to the defence ministry.

Nagwomu, however, said NIRA failed to adduce copies of the tenancy agreement, prompting a call for a forensic audit into the procurement.

He said although Parliament had appropriated billions of shillings to the national registration of learners project, NIRA had miserably failed to produce IDs for school-going children below 16 years.

Nagwomu questioned the rationale for NIRA to give free access of information on personal data to ministries, departments and agencies as well as telecommunication companies, yet on the other hand, it pays expensively to rent.

"There are a number of students that registered for national IDs but to date they have never got them, replacing an ID is also a pain, so something needs to be done urgently," Latif Ssebagala, the Kawempe North MP, said.

Army representative Pecos Kuteesa said if a country wants to plan for its people, registration of people right from birth to death is important. Therefore, the management of NIRA has to be streamlined with its core mandate.

The internal affairs state minister, Obiga Kania, said it is true there are weaknesses in NIRA. However, they are putting in place measures to improve the performance of the institution.

"We even appointed a new board chairperson and are in the process of getting a new executive director," Kania said.

Last month, President Yoweri Museveni ordered the firing of Judy Obitre-Gama, the executive director of the NIRA over failing to satisfactorily issue National Identity cards.

In a letter to internal affairs minister, Gen. Jeje Odongo, President Museveni instructed the minister to work with the NIRA board to fi nd a suitable replacement.

"I have been informed that the contract of the current executive director is due to expire. Given the problems faced by NIRA, especially relating to the issuance of national identity cards, there is need to identify a new executive director, preferably with legal or information technology background," Museveni said.

According to Muwanga's 2018 audit report, the processing of new applications was delayed by an average of 156 days in 2015, 91 days in 2016 and 100 days in 2017.

NIRA failed to account for sh8.4b paid to various officials as facilitation during the learners' registration exercise and purchased 2,000 laptops and 6,000 laptop batteries for the project, which, according to the Auditor General, were overpriced, leading to a loss of sh2.7b.