Prime
No surprise for entrenched corruption in Uganda
Julius Odwe
What you need to know:
- Reality. Uganda has for the last 32 years remained among the group of countries with the lowest of low incomes.
- While there were 69 countries in that category as of 1980, 38 have been upgraded to lower middle income.
I am not surprised by the statement of the Minister of Ethics and Integrity , Fr Simon Lokodo, in the story, ‘Lokodo hits back at TI corruption index report’, which was carried in the Daily Monitor of February 25, in which the minister was quoted as saying the report was biased. He was querying the 2017 global corruption index report, which ranked Uganda at 151 position, the same position it was in last year, scoring only 26 per cent.
Although Fr Lokodo is a staunch religious leader at the level of a priest, I think that he is a failure as far as promoting a corruption free Uganda is concerned. I did not expect him to tell Ugandans lies about the Judiciary, stalled government programmes, and that wide strides have been made in the fight against corruption. It is such statements that make Uganda distrust their leaders.
At one point, Fr Lakodo is talking lies, but at another point on the same matter, he is talking the truth. So which one should be taken without going far in the same story? Which one does the minister want the people to believe?
In this case, Fr Lokodo is quoted as saying “Every year, they come up with a report, I always question what parameters they use to determine the position of Uganda worldwide in corruption indices and the progress that they are giving us is not what I want to believe is genuine, because we have made heavy strides, very long strides in the fight against corruption.” I would imagine that if the minister knew that Transparency International (TI) presents its report every year, he should not have always questioned the parameters and not simply expressed surprise. He should have long since inquired from the TI the nature of the parameters which they use to assess countries and use them to guide the fight against corruption. This would have guided Uganda’s actions in the fight against corruption.
The information that the minister is seeking on how TI arrives at its conclusions is in the open. It can be accessed from the Internet. His ministry can also write to TI to request for background or clarification on any matter.
For example, TI has specific icons on its website. These include ‘Frequently asked questions’, which in some part, explains how one measures the degree of corruption and which sources one uses, etc. All these and many others would have been enough to allay the minister’s misgivings about the report.
His statement that government agencies under the inter-agency forum are investigating high profile cases does not make sense at all when in the first place, these agencies are disempowered financially. Minister Lokodo cannot seek to dismiss the TI report when he is at the same time acknowledging investigations into high level corruption! It is because of such cases that TI has convicted Uganda.
Mr Lokodo has nothing to show that there is an effective fight against corruption. His office does not have any demonstrable programme or strategy for helping us build moral values. The basis of fighting corruption is a capacity to build morally reliable Ugandans. As I know, the Ministry of Ethics is not known anywhere outside Kampala for any programme for building morality, ethics and integrity in Uganda.
Most important, however, is the fact that funding to towards the fight against corruption is simply inadequate. All the relevant agencies, be it the CID, which is the lead agency, the IGG, the Auditors General, the DPP and the courts have been financially disempowered. They have become toothless dogs.
If Uganda had been financially well organised, effective in the fight or had reduced on the levels of corruption, it perhaps would not have been necessary for the United Kingdom to have extended financial assistance to the tune of £500,000 to help in fighting corruption by automating the Anti-Corruption Court.
There is massive corruption in Uganda and a lot more has to be done without fear or favour. Although President Museveni boasted in 2016 that this was going to be “Kisanja Hakuna Mchezo”. At the weekend, the country saw NRM celebrate the successful passing of the age limit Bill. Ugandans now wait to see the launch of a significant fight against corruption.
On January 12 this year, the IGG released a list of 80 of the most corrupt government agencies. Local governments were in the lead. The report also indicated that corruption had increased by 69 per cent from 923 cases in 2016 to 1,560 in 2017. How will services reach Ugandans if delivery is in the hands of the most corrupt?
The IGG may not have pointed out that corruption is everywhere, including those outside the public ambits, where the IGG cannot touch, but it is. Corruption is negotiated, especially at a political and policy level, which are no go areas for the IGG. Corruption is also alive in the politics, policies, planning, programmes, projects, activities and service delivery to the peasants. The most victimised are the peasants, who even when they are living in abject poverty, must continue to pay taxes. Fuel prices have been increasing and government is seeking Shs736 billion loan to pay public servants.
The peasants are repaid with promises of projects and programmes which often never materialise. Uganda has for the last 32 years remained among the group of countries with the lowest of low incomes. While there were 69 countries in that category as of 1980, 38 have been upgraded to lower middle income.
Therefore, I appeal to President Museveni to ignore minister Lokodo’s kid gloves approach to dealing with corruption and adopt an approach that is as ruthless as that which countries like Rwanda have adopted.
Mr Odwe is a senior consultant of Security
Governance. [email protected]
