Church of Uganda sends 40 senior staff home

CHURCH | STAFF | COVID19

The Church of Uganda on Tuesday suspended over 51 Provincial Secretariat Office staff from its 37 Dioceses over financial hardship caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Several of the suspended staff are also set to lose their jobs after their contracts expired and had not been renewed while those whose contracts were still running have been asked to sign an addendum assuring them of their jobs after the situation normalizes.

The Church in a letter signed by Rev. Canon Captain William Ongeng the Provincial Secretary and Church's Human Resource Manager Rev. Canon Jane Kiggundu, directed the staff to go for unpaid leave from July till December pending further directives from administration.

Canon Ongeng confirmed the developments however insisted on a face to face interview to provide further details.

"I will not talk on phone but I insist on a face to face interview," Ongeng said before hanging up.

The New Vision has learnt that the decision to suspend the staff was taken by an emergency Provincial Assembly which is the Church's legislative body consisting of a House of Laity, a House of Clergy, and a House of Bishops, meeting held on July 2.

The Provincial Secretariat supports the Secretariat is overseen by the Archbishop of the Church of Uganda, and helps with the day-to-day management of church affairs together with the Provincial Secretary and a management team of Directors of the Seven Directorates.

The Provincial Secretariat has seven Directorates through which the coordination of ministry throughout all the Dioceses is handled. Only those from the Education, Health, Household and Community Transformation and only two officials from the Finance, Planning, and Investment were spared, while Audit and Assurance Services directorate, Management Support Services and Mission and Outreach were asked to leave.

The New Vision has also learnt that staff in the Kampala Arch Diocese superintendent over by the Arch Bishop Dr. Stephen Samuel Kaziimba Mugalu had already taken 50% pay cuts while Namirembe Diocese was also considering the same.

In April this year, the Church decided to send most of its staff on leave but continued paying their salaries but sources noted that the church's cash taps had dried out after President Yoweri Museveni in March this year suspends church congregations as a measure of containing the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sources noted that most of the salaries paid to the Secretariat staff were from tithes and offering by the congregates but that the banning of church activities had greatly affected church operations. The church is also heavily indebted after they heavily borrowed for the construction of the Church House.

The developments in church of Uganda some hardly a week Pentecostal church leaders demanded Government reopens their churches.