The Minister of Works and Transport, Mr. Fred Byamukama, has been moving around claiming to expose corruption within the Ministry of Works. He has been making statements and raising concerns about alleged corruption, but questions remain about whether sufficient evidence and proper investigations have been conducted before such issues are presented to the public.
However, he appears to have forgotten to address a serious and burning fire within the Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Coordination Authority, where he is among the members representing Uganda.
If I had the powers, I would also question Minister Fred Byamukama’s performance and demand accountability for what I consider to be inadequate research and investigation into issues before making public statements.
One may even ask: Could Minister Fred Byamukama be benefiting from the money within the Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Coordination Authority, making him less interested in investigating what is allegedly happening there?
These are serious questions that deserve answers.
In my view, alleged financial mismanagement within the Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Coordination Authority should be thoroughly investigated. The Minister of Works and Transport, together with the former Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Works, should be called upon to explain what they knew about the organisation’s operations and what action they took to protect Uganda’s interests.
The Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Coordination Authority was established under the 2007 Northern Corridor Agreement. It is an intergovernmental organisation that plays an important role in coordinating the movement of goods along one of East Africa’s most important trade routes. Its operations are supported through levies and contributions from member states, with Uganda and Kenya among the countries that contribute significantly to its financing.
There are now serious questions about governance, financial accountability and oversight within the organisation.
Interestingly, the organisation works closely with Uganda’s Ministry of Works and Transport. The interdicted Permanent Secretary, Mr. Waiswa Bageya, was a member of the Executive Committee, whose primary responsibility included oversight to ensure that funds provided to the organisation were used effectively, that established policies and procedures were followed, and that resources were managed in the interests of the organisation, taxpayers and citizens.
However, if reports of financial inefficiencies and other irregularities are accurate, questions must be asked as to why Mr. Bageya, while serving as Permanent Secretary, and Minister Fred Byamukama did not raise concerns or take action earlier.
As a citizen, this raises concerns about whether the two officials adequately represented Uganda’s interests as a member state. It would therefore be important for the relevant authorities to establish whether there were failures of oversight, negligence or any other wrongdoing.
It would also be premature to conclude that Mr. Bageya’s current interdiction is directly connected to the issues within the Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Coordination Authority without evidence. However, the circumstances make it necessary to ask whether the ministry’s leadership adequately identified and addressed corruption and financial accountability concerns during his tenure.
Mr. Bageya and Minister Fred Byamukama should therefore be questioned about what they knew, what they did, and what they failed to do regarding the alleged financial losses and governance concerns within the organisation.
If Uganda has indeed been losing as much as Shs 6 billion annually, as has been alleged, then the public deserves to know where the money went, who was responsible for its management, and why the relevant oversight authorities failed to detect or stop the losses earlier.
This is not simply about individuals. It is about accountability, protection of public resources and ensuring that Uganda’s interests are properly represented in regional institutions funded by taxpayers.
The relevant authorities should investigate these allegations thoroughly and, where wrongdoing is established, hold those responsible accountable.
The writer is the senior veteran journalist.
