Museveni hit at corrupt leaders-what a bluff!

I broke the story of President Yoweri Museveni expressing shock at the level of corruption within his government.

As I re-typed (for publication) out every sentence in his letter to his Prime Minister Apolo Nsibambi and copied to MPs, I could not help laughing out loud at Museveni’s epistle expressing shock at learning that contract prices are inflated and the money swindled.

Oh dear! I could not help asking loud whether some new fund had been set up by Bush administration, UK or Canada -Government always shouts thief whenever there is a new fund for Africa- which we need to siphon.

Does our dear president have such a poor memory that he could not recall that in 1998 he revealed that he pardoned his brother Gen Salim Sale for inflating the contract for, and in turn delivered junk helicopters

Could someone jog Museveni’s memory that one of his senior NRM cadres now a Cabinet members siphoned off 4,000 litres of fuel after losing his parliamentary seat, on grounds that he rigged elections.

Come on! Does Museveni not remember that he promoted and reappointed two junior ministers to senior ministerial positions after parliament had censored them over corruption, and one repeated the act-Gavi and Global Fund scandal!

The president played a leading role in the creation of Tri-Star which went down with over Ush20bn, and which is on the verge of getting more? Another still birth Textile Company -Phenix Logistics got over Ush4bn-failed to pay back and just last month, government guarantee $5.5m from Japanese’s International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for Phenix.

Government has habitually given out billions of shillings to individual businessmen without parliament’s sanction or any transparent policies governing these donations.

The bail outs to Hassan Basajjabalaba, the head of the NRM Entrepreuers team who got Ush31bn in government bailout on the President's instructions – some of which was money meant to recapitalise Uganda Development Bank.

At the directive of the president, the minister of finance can inject public funds into a private entity without parliament’s knowledge and then declare that those funds translate into government’s shareholding. Moreover the office of the Auditor General cannot audit such firm’s since government is minority shareholder, isn’t that daylight robbery Mr. President?

The list of inflated contracts snakes all the way back to the sanctified corridors of State House. Entebbe State House construction? Inflated. UBC's relocation costs? Inflated. UCB's sale? Murky and inflated. National ID costs? Muddled and Inflated. Army numbers? Inflated, Oil reserves? flawed procurement process.

No Ugandan can fail to point out a murky tendering process or an inflated project

And if all that is news to President Museveni, then, let us tighten our seat belts. Corruption is probably the biggest threat to our existence as a country at the moment

The cancer of corruption and culture of impunity in Uganda can only be cured by vigilant anti-corruption institutions, by strong, sustained and impartial investigation, arrest and trial of all involved -- including those who walk the highest corridors of power!