Parliament’s pension scheme under probe

 

By NELSON WESONGA

In Summary

The Inspectorate of Government says the investigation into alleged mismanagement of the scheme arose out of the Auditor General’s 2012 report.

The Inspectorate of Government is investigating the Shs55.5 billion-rich Parliamentary Pension Scheme (PPS) over allegations of financial impropriety.

Ms Irene Mulyagonja, the Inspector General of Government, said the investigation into alleged corruption, abuse of office and cause of financial loss by management of the scheme arose out of the Auditor General’s 2012 report.

 

“The purpose of this letter is to introduce Mr Samuel Ojilong and Ms Judith Katusiime who are mandated to investigate this matter,” said Ms Mulyagonja in an April 18 letter to the Clerk to Parliament, Ms Jane Kibirige.


Ms Mulyagonga urged the House to avail to them all the information as well as the documents necessary to the investigation.

However, the deputy Clerk to Parliament Mr Chris Kaija Kwamya said yesterday that much as PPS welcomes the investigation, the Auditor General had earlier given the scheme a clean bill of health.

“We had an Annual General Meeting two weeks back which was also attended by the Auditor General. He said the scheme is clean. So it is a surprise to the scheme that hardly two weeks later, the allegations have cropped up,” said Mr Kwamya.

Mr Emmanuel Dombo, a member of the Parliamentary Commission, said they would not speculate on why the IGG would probe a scheme that had been given a clean bill of health. “What we do is in conformity with the law. The IGG’s letter is not specific. We cannot begin speculating now,” said Mr Dombo.

The Daily Monitor could not readily establish when the Inspectorate will have completed its investigation. An Act of Parliament set up the PPS in 2007 to serve as a contributory scheme for legislators as well as the parliamentary staff. The government tops up their contributions.

Owners of buildings face court for flouting city plans

 

 

DAR ES SALAAM | Elite Tower | 13 fl | U/C

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along Azikiwe Road (Posta Mpya)

A JV Project between NHC & private developer.

 

By Abdu Kiyaga

Proprietors of buildings in Kampala who have turned parking space in the basements into shops have been asked to reconvert or face prosecution for violating the 2010 Physical Planning Act.

The Act mandates only the Kampala Capital City Authority to approve all infrastructural plans in the city. Documents obtained by the Daily Monitor, state that the authority issued a 28 days notice which ends on


May 14 to several owners of building notifying them to adhere to the plans submitted and approved.

NHC charts plans for city housing project

“All property owners in the city whose parking space was converted into shops have been issued with notices ordering them to reconvert the space as per the approved plans up to May 14th,” Mr Peter Kaujju, the KCCA spokesperson, said yesterday.

“Failure will result into prosecution into the courts of law,” he added.
KCCA has previously tried to crack a whip on buildings that defy city plans.




Recently, the authority rejected an expansion plan by Christ the King Church submitted in 2011, saying it violated city standards.


“What we want from them is to quickly create parking space and reduce on congestion in the city,” Mr Kaujju said. In an authority meeting last year, although not definitive, the political arm of KCCA suggested an introduction of fines to property owners who violate city plans.

Immunisation cash to go to civil society

 

With the Internet becoming part of our everyday life, Telecom companies are coming up with ways of meeting the demand for better internet services. The latest in this endeavour is MTN’s 4G LTE. But what does this technology mean to internet users. File photo 

By Stephen Otage

Immunisation programmes across the country will soon be implemented through civil society organisations.
According to the Global Fund to Fight HIV/Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the organisations that will implement the programmes will be selected according to their competencies.

Unlike in the past where the funds were directly sent to the Ministry of Health, the development will see money channeled through the Ministry of Finance and disbursed to the civil society organisations through the Malaria and Childhood Illness NGO Secretariat.

Addressing representatives of civil society organsations at the inauguration of the African Vaccination week yesterday, Dr Maryse Dugue, the head of the Anglo-Phone Africa, said they found it necessary to work with civil society organisations because of their competence.

There are organisations that are good at advocacy, monitoring and evaluation, accountability and they have been working closely with the beneficiary communities,” Ms Dugue said.

Medics body faulted on autopsy

L-R: Wesley Nganizi, district police commander Jinja road, Ibin Ssenkumbi, Kampala Metropolitan Police public relations officer and Hilary Kulayigye, mid-southwestern regional police commander. 

By Betty Ndagire

Lawyer of a Kampala gynaecologist, Dr Edward Tamale Ssali, has faulted the Uganda Medical and Dental Practitioners Council (UMDPC) on the postmortem report published in connection with the death of a patient at the Women Fertility Centre in Bukoto three years ago.

Mr Macdosman Kabega produced a witness statement made by one of the relatives of the deceased (Mercy Ayiru) on Tuesday stating that they contacted Dr Sylvester Onzivua, their relative, to help in carrying out the postmortem, which is contrary to the ethical practices.

He said allowing Dr Onzivua to conduct the postmortem may have yielded to conflict of interest. However, during cross examination of the chairperson of the ethics committee in UMDPC, Dr Margaret Mungerera, told court that they were not aware that Dr Onzivua was a relative of the deceased.

The revelation was made in a case of negligence that led to death of Ayiru against Dr Ssali, the proprietor of the centre and Mr Christopher Kirunda, an anaesthetist at the facility.

Their co-accused, Dr Rafique Parker, who is based in Nairobi, has never reported to court on charges of causing the death. Dr Onzivua is also one of the prosecution witnesses who testified against Dr Ssali.

Further complaints
“Your worship even the team of six doctors who investigated what caused Ayiru’s death, none of them is a professional in laparoscopic surgery which was allegedly carried out on the deceased,” Mr Kabega argued.

Dr Ssali and Mr Kirunda yesterday appeared before the Chief Magistrates Court at Buganda Road for hearing of the case. The trial magistrate, Ms Olive Kazaarwe, extended the matter to May 31 for further hearing.

Ministry to roll out drug monitoring system

Brig Muhoozi’s meteoric rise to the top of the army leadership in 15 years has been the subject of debate. Right is Brig. Kasirye Ggwanga . 

By Sarah Tumwebaze

The Ministry of Health plans to roll out a new computerised system that will monitor drugs from the National Medical Stores to the end user.

The $22.8m (about Shs56.9b) Integrated Intelligent Computer System, which was developed in 2010 through the Presidential Support to Scientists initiative, is currently being used at Mulago Hospital.

Speaking in an interview with the Daily Monitor yesterday, the ministry’s permanent secretary, Dr Asuman Lukwago explained: “We need about Shs124.3b to rollout the system in the whole country because the ministry is highly interested in its benefits.”

Dr Lukwago said the system has for two years helped the drug management system at Mulago Hospital where delivered drugs are entered into the system plus their batch number and the date of expiry.

Activists decry the inadequate health services in rural areas

President Museveni (in hat), inspects part of the land in Amuru District, which he proposed should be given to Madhvani Group to grow sugarcane, recently. PPU PHOTO

By EPHRAIM KASOZI

Health centre IVs receive about 12 times the number of patients that health centre IIs and IIIs receive, a situation that hinders effective service delivery in rural areas, health activists have said.

Under the Uganda National Health Consumers’ Organisation (UNHCO), the activists said health centre IIs and IIIs have no maternity wards and children wards, forcing patients to abandon them.

“At the health centres, you find children mixed with adults which is dangerous. They also lack essential drugs and the source of water is the rain water harvesting system which is dilapidated,” said Ms Prima Kazoora, an officer with the coalition for Health Promotion and Social Development (HEPS-Uganda).

Ms Kazoora was speaking at the national dissemination of the Quantitative Service Delivery Survey and the Citizens’ Report Card in Kampala yesterday.


Mr Aziz Agaba, the programme officer of UNHCO, said: “There is lack of privacy during consultation, examination and counselling and this abuse of patients’ rights to confidentiality could undermine service utilisation.”

Ms Rosette Mutambi, the executive director of UNHCO, also blamed the government for not involving communities in decision making in health matters.

Shs300b cut from health to fund defence

Junior Finance minister Matia Kasaija  

By YASIIN MUGERWAinShare

The government has slashed budget allocations to several ministries and referral hospitals so as to raise Shs300 billion to pay for supplementary expenditure in State House and Defence.

News of budgets cuts in an already poorly funded health sector would be the latest indication yet that the NRM government is betraying its 2011-2016 manifesto promise to deliver adequate healthcare to all Ugandans.


The NRM government had, in its manifesto, committed to

spend more towards delivery of health services, including equipping all health units, scaling up supply of medicines, provision of housing, improved welfare for health workers and elimination of theft of medicines.

But three years later, Junior Finance minister Matia Kasaija told the parliamentary Budget Committee on Tuesday that the “painful” budget cuts to hospitals and other agencies were “inevitable”.

Mr Kasaija said the slash in sector spending has been forced by the “extensive” donor aid cuts estimated in excess of Shs298b this financial year, resulting from the corruption in the Office of the Prime Minister.

Disclosing how the government expects to generate Shs555.8b needed for supplementary spending, of which State House requested for Shs138.2b for the presidency, the minister said the government reluctantly suppressed the 2012/13 financial year allocations. This, he said, had realised at least Shs313.68 b.

Amidst heavy criticism from Budget Committee members, Mr Kasaija said: “Based on the fact that Uganda Revenue Authority’s cumulative performance for the last three quarters of the financial year registered significant revenue shortfalls, URA is not likely to meet the (Shs7.3 trillion) target for the FY 2012/13.”

The Daily Monitor has seen documents detailing the new budget cuts indicating that cash-strapped institutions like Mulago National Referral Hospital and district referral hospitals have been hit.

The cuts, according to Health Budget Committee Chairperson, Dr Sam Lyomoki, will further dampen efforts to fix what he called the “sick” healthcare system.

He said some hospitals are likely to go without essential drugs while others will not be able to pay for utilities. Dr Lyomoki and other members criticised the government’s decision to refund Shs45.6b stolen donor aid on behalf of people who reportedly misappropriated it in OPM. “Instead of giving National Medical Stores the Shs16b they want to equip hospitals, you’re busy assisting thieves to pay their bills. How can you cut budgets for hospitals to finance State House when people are dying in hospitals?” Dr Lyomoki asked.

Dr Lulume Bayiga (Buikwe South) said underfunding to the health sector has aggravated a situation where lack of drugs, inadequate health workers, delays in acces
 

Amos Lugoloobi (Ntenjeru North) and Judith Franca Akello (Agago Woman) expressed concerns that department “notorious” for large spending like State House and defence don’t suffer budget cuts.

The Director Budget Patrick Ochilap said out of Shs555.8b asked for in the supplementary, Shs277.3b has already spent, meaning that Parliament will be rubber-stamping the expenditure. The committee on Tuesday criticised Finance for approving supplementary requests without carrying out due diligence.

ymugerwa@ug.nationmedia.com

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AFFECTED HOSPITALS, MINISTRIES AND AGENCIES

Mulago lost Shs5.3b, Butabika Mental Hospital Shs848.3m, Affected referral hospitals include Moroto Shs321.5m, Jinja Shs210.2m, Arua Shs202.3m, Masaka Shs85.3m, Lira Shs62m, Soroti Shs94.2m and Kabale Shs34.4m. Others are Uganda Aids Commission Shs361.1m, Ministry of Health Shs871.6m, Health Service Commission Shs149.2m. Judiciary Shs1.4b, local governments Shs90.8b, Makerere University Shs4.6b, KCCA Shs14b, Agriculture ministry Shs11.7b, Road Fund Shs66.4b, Water and Environment Shs40b, Naads Secretariat 8.3b, Uganda Human Rights Commission Shs240.9m, among others.