Gov't urged to establish laws, body for asset recovery in corruption cases

Civil Society Organisations have called on the Ugandan government to amend existing laws and establish a central body dedicated to asset recovery as part of the fight against corruption.

During the National Citizens' Integrity Awards ceremony held on July 12 in Kampala, Mr. Marlon Agaba, the Executive Director of the Anti-Corruption Coalition Uganda (ACCU), highlighted the absence of an independent body tasked with asset recovery in the country.

"We do not have institutions mandated to do asset recovery. Yes we have IGG, DPP, and the state house anti- corruption unit but there is no central agency. So we need a central body and its work is to look out for assets bring back to public use," Mr. Agaba said.

He further said that Uganda loses approximately Shs9.1 trillion annually to corruption, but only about Shs30 billion, less than 1% of the amount lost, is recovered.

Mr. Agaba emphasised the need for a comprehensive law on asset recovery to combat this issue effectively and called for the enactment of the Proceeds of Crime Bill.

“If that law is passed and we have provisions on asset recovery whereby even if the person is not convicted but if they cannot show case how they acquired the assets they have, then the state has the liberty to acquire them," he explained.

The Inspector General of Government recently required certain public officials to declare their assets to the public, but some individuals refused to comply. Mr. Agaba pointed out that asset declaration and verification processes have proven highly ineffective.

"Even if people declare, there is little verification and follow up, so even if they provide falsehoods the verification and follow up is quite limited,” he said. Adding that, “But also the citizen involvement is limited because the information is hidden. In other countries the information of assets of leaders is public but in Uganda is hidden and this makes it harder to do follow ups." 

Mr. Agaba highlighted the limited involvement of citizens due to the secrecy surrounding information on leaders' assets in Uganda, making it challenging to carry out thorough investigations.

Mr. Xavier Ejoyi, the Country Director of ActionAid, said corruption is a major obstacle in eradicating poverty. He stressed the need for individuals responsible for fighting corruption to uphold high levels of integrity in their duties.

During the awards ceremony, 15 individuals out of 674 nominees were honored with the National Citizen Integrity Awards 2023 for their outstanding work and integrity. The winners, including educators, accountants, politicians, and medical professionals, were recognised in various categories, such as service obligation, political obligation, and management obligation.

Mr. Agaba noted that these integrity awards serve to inspire other leaders to excel in their roles and improve services in their respective capacities.

Mr. Balunywa Waiswa, the overall winner in the Management Obligation category, urged the government to conduct extensive anti-corruption sensitisation campaigns at the grassroots level and encouraged parents to discuss corruption with their children.