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Parliament orders audit of police Exodus Sacco
Deputy speaker Anita Among at Nsambya police barracks on March 8, 2022 as she visited the family of the late Robert Bweyamba, a police officer who served as a driver at Parliament. She said police officers' welfare has to be addressed as a matter of urgency because the situation at the barracks is worrying.
What you need to know:
Legislators say police officers are not allowed to withdraw money from the Sacco.
Parliament has ordered the office of the Auditor General to carry out a forensic audit into the Exodus Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisation (Sacco) to establish the status of operations and anomalies in financial transactions.
The move comes after issues were raised on how police officers are forced into saving with the Sacco but are not allowed to withdraw their money.
While giving information on the matter at Parliament on Wednesday, Mr Geoffrey Macho, the Busia Municipality MP, said he had received multiple complaints from different police officers who say every month, money is deducted from their salaries as savings to the scheme, but when they want to access their money, they are turned away.
He added that the Sacco has made it compulsory for the members to fill their requests online, even in places where accessing the Internet is a challenge.
“Police officers through their Exodus Sacco are not enjoying. Some police officers have collapsed at the Exodus offices when they go to withdraw their money,” Mr Macho said.
He added: “Therefore, the government Chief Whip, I ask you to inform the responsible officers who are handling the Exodus Sacco to put their house in order.”
Mr Nathan Nandala Mafabi, the Budadiri West MP, who chaired the Public Accounts Committee which ordered for a forensic audit, said this is not the first time that the issue has come up.
“The issue is that when the police officers want their money, they are told that there is no money. One time, police came up with an excuse that they lacked food and used money from the Sacco to buy food and because of that, they needed supplementary to replenish the money,” he said.
Mr Mafabi added that the committee had already ordered the Auditor General to carry out a forensic audit of the Sacco and present a report before the House, but this never happened.
“Parliament at the time agreed to give them money, but when we asked for a forensic audit to be done on the Sacco, up to now we have not got a report of the audit. However, every policeman and woman, day in, day out is complaining about exodus Sacco,” he said.
The Deputy Speaker, Ms Anita Among, directed the Clerk of Parliament, Mr Adolf Mwesige Kasaija, to write to the Auditor General demanding for the forensic audit report within a month.
Parliament also directed the police authorities and the Ministry of Internal Affairs to come up with a comprehensive budget to address the issues of welfare of the police officers, who are living in deplorable conditions.
Among said when she visited Nsambya Police Barracks this week, she found the situation ‘sickening’ and asked for immediate intervention. She said many officers sleep in make-shift structures they construct themselves with their entire families.
Mr Asuman Basalirwa, the Bugiri Municipality MP, said the issue of the police has been before the Parliament for a long time and blamed Cabinet of failing to address the issue.
Mr Thomas Tayebwa, the government Chief Whip, told the House that Cabinet will take up the issue and come up with a comprehensive solution.
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