Prime
Mindset change should start with leaders
Finance Minister Matia Kasaija and colleagues arrive for the 2023/2024 National Budget reading at the Kololo Ceremonial Grounds in Kampala on June 15, 2023. PHOTOS/DAVID LUBOWA
What you need to know:
- The issue: Mindset change
- Our view: If this budget is going to make sense for the ordinary person, let mindset change start with leaders so they spend on productive ventures, avoid excesses, fight corruption, and stick to the planned expenditure for the development of this country.
As Ugandans gather at Kololo Ceremonial Grounds, physically or through the various forms of media, to listen to the 2024/25 national budget, the people are not waiting to hear anything new from the Finance minister Matia Kasaija or President Museveni, but await the implementation of the budget months from today.
There are already fault lines in the budget, whose estimates were increased from Shs52 trillion to Shs72 trillion, and not by extra income that was going to be generated, but by the expenditure.
As he addressed the nation a week ago, the President confirmed that he had evidence of collusion between the legislators and the officials at the Ministry of Finance to create allocations, aided by corruption.
Well, some MPs have been arrested and more could be arrested; some may even fear to come for the budget reading occasion just in case they are the next on the police list of suspects.
The Inspectorate of Government has previously said over Shs10 trillion is lost every year to corruption and related theft and or embezzlement of allocated funds.
Another big percentage is lost in wastage such as donations by different leaders, with no caps, double payments where salary-earning civil servants are also given allowances to do their work, service awards where beneficiaries are already earning a salary elsewhere, and compensations which in many cases are awarded because officials have a cut. And the country loses more than Shs3 trillions in such court awards and compensations.
The government over the years has allocated money for mindset change and the target has been the local people, who must be trained to love their country and work for progress, not for their ‘stomachs’ alone. This gospel has been clear and spread from the highest altar of Uganda and from the President himself.
However, a mindset change is also necessary for the leaders. For example, even with the increase in the allocations, it will not be surprising that by the end of the first quarter, there will be requests for a supplementary budget.
Leaders are donating money the way they want, they are sharing as they want and are taking trips as much as they want despite austerity measures announced at the start of the 2023/24 financial year.
We have 529 MPs, 146 district chairpersons, 43,202 councillors, 729,029 youth leaders, 405,010 PWD leaders, 405,010 old persons’ leaders, 418,855 women leaders, 811,140 village leaders in a country of nearly 50 million people. All these want a piece from the budget.
So, if this budget is going to make sense for the ordinary person, let mindset change start with leaders so they spend on productive ventures, avoid excesses, fight corruption, and stick to the planned expenditure for the development of this country.
