Activists ask for separate anti-corruption units at MDAs

Nov 25, 2020

The Global Financial Integrity Report 2018, indicates that Uganda loses at least $1b annually in corruption.

Despite extensive legislation and other measures put in place to end corruption, the vice continues to persist in many public offices. Anti-graft Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) say this continues to affect the quality of service delivery in the country.

The organisations have called on the Government to tighten the existing legal and institutional framework, to easily help in tracking and prosecuting corrupt individuals in government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs).

In a joint press briefing to commemorate the International Anti-Corruption Day, at Fairway Hotel in Kampala, the organisations called on the Government to introduce special units in different MDAs, where people can report cases without fear to be investigated.

The event was organised by ActionAid International Uganda (AAIU), in partnership with Transparency International Uganda (TIU), Uganda Debt Network (UDN) and the Anti-Corruption Coalition Uganda (ACCU), supported by the Democratic Governance Facility (DGF).

"Many people fear to report these cases in various institutions for different reasons. Some have lost trust in the existing institutions, which are responsible for fighting graft. When the State House Anti-Corruption Unit (SHACU) was created, they gave out public contacts. But we have got complaints of people whose cases have not been worked on, yet they were reported," the programme manager of UDN, Christine Byiringiro, noted.

She said, with such special units and an independent call centres in place, more people will report their cases freely, without fear of being exposed and have them investigated by the Inspectorate of Government (IG).

The CSOs acknowledged the Government's efforts towards fighting the vice, including the establishment of strong legal frameworks, making reforms in the management of public funds and improving communication and feedback mechanism.

However, they stressed that much needs to be done to get better results. Byiringiro noted that even the National Development Plan (NDP III), identifies corruption as one of the key obstacles to the country's development. The East African Bribery Index (2017) ranked Uganda as the second most corrupt country in the region, with the Police and Judiciary as the leading corrupt institutions.

The Global Financial Integrity Report 2018, indicates that Uganda loses at least $1b annually in corruption.

REVISIT LEADERSHIP CODE ACT

The executive director of TIU, Peter Wandera, said there is need to revisit the Leadership Code Act to reintroduce the clause which provides for spouses and children of the various public officials and political leaders to declare their wealth.

"During the preparation of the Bill and the previous Act, Parliament removed this clause. But we all know that many leaders accumulate wealth through fraudulent means or corruption, and register them in the names of their spouses and children. So, without this clause, it will be hard to trace and recover such property," he added.

"That is why the Government cannot do much in recovery. If we do a property census today, you might be surprised that some of the buildings you see are in the names of five-year old children, because many use the names of their children and spouses to register their property. But we all know a five-year-old cannot own such a building." Wandera also noted that SHACU needs to work closely with the IG to easily prosecute corrupt officials.

"If you look at all the cases that Edith Nakalema (SHACU boss) has come up with, how many have been convicted? They are quite a few. That is why the process needs to be watertight so that we see those convicted. The unit does not have the same capacity to investigate and prosecute, like the IG," Wandera noted.

The executive director of ACCU, Cissy Kagaba, said there is also need for a tighter law to track election financing. "We do not know where these candidates get money or who funds them. Otherwise, you might find that some of them pay back through awarding contracts, which costs the country," she added.

They also called for increased funding of the IG, anti-corruption department of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions and other agencies. They also suggested the introduction of a comprehensive witness protection legal and institutional framework for witnesses and informers.

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