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Ssali, Lamaro dropped as Museveni reshuffles permanent secretaries
Combo: Ms Ketty Lamaro (L) and Ms Geraldine Ssali (R)
What you need to know:
- According to the sources, the ICT Ministry PS, Dr Aminah Zawedde as well as Mr Ramathan Ggoobi of the Finance ministry were retained.
- This comes after the Head of Public Service, Ms Lucy Nakyobe subjected all the Permanent Secretaries to performance appraisals which partly informed Mr Museveni’s decision.
President Museveni has dropped the embattled former permanent secretary of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, Ms Geraldine Ssali.
Ms Ssali who was last month charged alongside other ministry officials and legislators in Anti-corruption Court over their alleged involvement in mismanagement of Cooperative cash was replaced by Mr Lynette Bagonza, the former undersecretary at Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Sources at State House and Ministry of Public Service told this publication that Ms Ssali was fired alongside her education ministry counterpart, Ms Ketty Lamaro.
Ms Lamaro, the sources say was replaced by the Ministry’s undersecretary, Jane Egau Akol.
The sources added that although Ms Lamaro was cleared by public service to continue working, Mr Museveni rejected the proposal.
According to the sources, the ICT Ministry PS, Dr Aminah Zawedde as well as Mr Ramathan Ggoobi of the Finance ministry were retained.
Others who retained their positions are; Adolf Mwesige, the Accounting Officer at Parliament, Jane Barekye of State House, Gen David Kasura at the Agricultural Ministry PS, Gen Joseph Musanyufu and Eng Irene Batebe in the Internal Affairs and Energy ministries respectively.
All these will serve for three more years.
This comes after the Head of Public Service, Ms Lucy Nakyobe subjected all the Permanent Secretaries to performance appraisals which partly informed Mr Museveni’s decision.
Ssali woes
Ms Ssali has been battling with the case of misappropriation of Cooperative funds where the Parliament committee on trade last year pinned her for her involvement in mismanagement of the funds of some cooperative society.
She was also pinned for allegedly creating a parallel verification committee contrary to that created by the Cabinet to examine the Cooperatives that lost their property during the five-year war that brought President Museveni to power in 1986.
The 210-page October, 2023 report by the Mwine Mpaka led committee in parliament, whose findings have since left three legislators Michael Mawanda (Igara East), Paul Akamba (Busiki County) and Ignatius Wamakuyu (Elgon County) all behind bars, did not leave the embattled Ssali who since its release was swimming in series of scandals until her arrest on July 28.
Despite the existence of the Inter-Ministerial Committee that had been constituted by the Cabinet to verify war loss claims by the cooperatives, the PS, according to the Mwine Mpaka-led committee also created a parallel verification committee.
It is through this parallel committee that Ms Ssali allegedly influenced compensation process.
The several cooperatives which made compensation claims and allegedly got paid billions of taxpayers’ money erroneously include; Lambuli Central peppery Cooperative Society (Shs4.7b), Jinja Multipurpose Cooperative Society Ltd (Shs 4.8b), Buyaka cooperative Society (Shs3.5b), Masaaba Cooperative Union (Shs5b), Bumwambu Cooperative Society Ltd (Shs6.1b), Masaka Cooperative Union (Shs7b) and Bwavumpologoma Growers cooperative Union (Shs2.75b).
Of all, the issues Bwavumpologoma Growers Cooperative Union Limited was a source of contention, which prompted the committee to summon the PS who did not shy away during the September 23, 2023 meeting.
In defense, Ms Ssali told the committee in September last year that the said cooperative was headed by his grandparents so she knew all the details about it, and that it was indeed affected.
After her arrest the president appointed Alex Kakoza the former Education PS to replace her but later recalled his appointment under unclear circumstances.
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