Uganda, in the entire Great Lakes region, is the only country where Ugandans are free to challenge something they see as not correct.
I am among those brave Ugandans who do not condone corruption in our country because it has really affected service delivery, but I do not wish to see the real thieves trying to shift their sins to innocent lower officers instead of accepting to carry the blame.
I am referring to the recent humiliation and arrest of two Ministry of Works officials over an alleged compensation scam on the Nateete-Nakawuka and Mpigi Road Project.
This arrest was done by our hardworking State House Anti-Corruption Unit under the orders of the Minister of Works and Transport, Mr Fred Byamukama.
According to the minister, in his outbursts, he accused these officials of inflating compensation rates and fraudulent valuation of properties along the route. But really, without being biased, I totally disagree with the minister’s findings on this.
First of all, before any compensation is done, there is a lot that takes place, including several meetings whereby various leaders, such as LC1 chairpersons, LC2 chairpersons, division or LC3 chairpersons, sub-county and district councillors, the district chairperson, the area land committee for the particular place, the office of the DISO, RDC and CAO, have to be involved.
After that, the report is produced and sent to the Chief Government Valuer, who also has his own file and verification team to carry out a series of verifications before any payment is approved. When the report is not okay, the Chief Government Valuer rejects it there and then. The Chief Government Valuer also has an independent field verification exercise and confirms the valuation before approval.
We all know that the law only allows the Chief Government Valuer to approve compensation. I am wondering how the two arrested boys could have squeezed through or connived.
The law is very clear; it does not allow the government to take land by force. There must be consent from the owner before the report is sent to the Chief Government Valuer.
Now, my question is: the Minister, Byamukama, ordered the arrest of these officials, accusing them of inflating the compensation rates. What is the statement of the Chief Government Valuer, district and sub-county leaders, and other offices such as the RDC, DISO, LCV, District Land Board and the area land committee of those areas?
To be sincere, by the time Ugandans get to realise that my argument on this issue was correct, it will be too late. The whole truth is that Minister Byamukama is just after the small people who cannot bite him, leaving the real thieves laughing and dining together with him.
This has made me conclude that whatever is happening in the Ministry of Works in the name of exposing and fighting corruption is just witch-hunting junior officials and getting rid of them so that their relatives occupy those offices, as is currently being reported in UCAA, where relatives of those claiming to be fighting corruption were erroneously recruited in the aviation sector.
I am seeing some of them trying to hide under our clean PLU organisation, yet they are the corrupt officers who should have been dismissed by now.
This has also made me conclude that these corrupt officials are now overrunning the IGG, making the IGG also keep quiet about the report they generated about the Ministry of Works instead of releasing it.
According to my investigations, there is a plan by these thieves to make the IGG alter the first report and redo it with the intention of implicating innocent officers at the expense of those who are responsible for the ongoing racket. I want to ask the IGG never to accept that invitation, or else they will also be like the former IGG.
I am urging our badman, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, that some thieves are trying to hide in our PLU. We should screen them before giving them our numbers.
The writer is a senior veteran journalist.
