The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, Ramathan Ggoobi, has prevented Dr. Aminah Zawedde, his counterpart in the ICT Ministry, from accessing Shs 6.7bn of Non-Tax Revenue (NTR) collected by the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) to prevent potential misuse.
The UCC collects levies from telecommunication operators like MTN and Airtel, which partially fund the activities of the ICT Ministry. In September 2023, Zawedde sought permission from Ggoobi to utilize Shs 6.7bn collected by UCC. However, Ggoobi denied her request due to a “confirmed risk of duplication.”
Ggoobi pointed out that Zawedde’s request showed that the activities intended to be funded by the NTR were already included in the Ministry’s annual work plan for the fiscal year 2023/24. A review revealed that these activities were also part of the Vote Work Plan funded under the main budget appropriated by Parliament. Essentially, Ggoobi discovered that Zawedde was requesting UCC funds for activities already budgeted in the ICT Ministry’s main budget.
In a letter to Zawedde, Ggoobi emphasized that approving the request to use NTR for the same interventions would lead to duplication. Sources disclosed that the Finance Ministry had been wary of suspicious transactions involving Zawedde. For instance, she had spent over Shs 400m in three months on vehicle repairs for the ICT Ministry, raising suspicions.
Invoices for vehicle repairs were frequently sent from the ICT Ministry to UCC. In December 2021, the Ministry used UCC funds to pay Shs 15.1m for the ‘repair maintenance’ of vehicle number UG 0045N. Two months later, Shs 18m was requested for servicing the same vehicle. Additionally, Shs 18.4m was used for the ‘maintenance service’ of vehicle number UG 0048N.
Ggoobi referenced Section 29 2(a) and (3) of the Public Finance Management Act 2015, stating that all NTR allocations were integrated into the medium-term expenditure framework (MTEF) from FY 2019/20 onwards, with collections remitted to the Consolidated Fund and Expenditure Limits issued for spending. He noted that the ICT Ministry neither collected NTR nor directly received funds from UCC. Therefore, Zawedde’s request undermined the legal provision ensuring efficient and transparent utilization of NTR.
Ggoobi concluded that the Finance Ministry could not approve Zawedde’s request. Instead, he advised that the funds earmarked by UCC for ICT Ministry activities should be remitted to the Consolidated Fund and appropriated under the Ministry’s Vote to ensure transparency and proper accountability, avoiding duplication.
President Museveni was informed about Zawedde’s suspicious requests, prompting him to advise the Finance Ministry to conduct a forensic investigation into the ICT Ministry’s payments from 2021, when Zawedde was appointed Permanent Secretary, to 2023. These revelations come amid scrutiny over the ICT Ministry’s spending, including nearly a billion shillings on purchasing a Toyota Land Cruiser from Cadam Enterprises, a car bond in Kampala.
The ICT Ministry denied spending Shs 965m on a Toyota Land Cruiser LC 300 VX, clarifying that “two vehicles were procured, not one,” but did not disclose the cost of each vehicle. The vehicles were registered as UG 0057N and UG 0058N, with UG 0058N being Zawedde’s official car and UG 0057N belonging to State Minister for National Guidance, Godfrey Kabbyanga Baluku.
The Ministry did not explain why it opted to buy cars from a car bond when the government typically procures brand new vehicles from manufacturer-authorized agents. Nelson Senyange, a reputable car dealer, expressed shock at the Ministry’s statement, highlighting the discrepancy in costs between duty-free cars and those purchased from authorized dealers with warranties.
Furthermore, Zawedde bought a Toyota Land Cruiser LC 300 VX with a 3346 Cubic Centimeters (cc) diesel engine, which exceeds the 3,000 cc limit authorized for Permanent Secretaries. Vehicles above 3,000 cc are reserved for Ministers, the Prime Minister, Vice President, and President.
Zawedde was appointed PS ICT Ministry in June 2021, replacing Vincent Bagiire. Her contract expired on June 31, 2024. The Public Service Commission is currently assessing her performance to advise President Museveni on whether to renew her contract.
This forensic investigation occurs amidst a crackdown on corruption involving senior government officials and lawmakers. Recently, Trade Ministry Permanent Secretary Geraldine Ssali was charged with causing financial loss and conspiring with Members of Parliament to steal cooperatives’ funds and was remanded to Luzira Prison.
