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Uganda Peoples Congress

Uganda Peoples Congress
National Secretariat
Plot 8-10 Kampala Road, Uganda House,
P. O. Box 9206, Kampala
phone/Fax:+256-41-236748

Prosecute Perpetuators of Economic Crimes

Press Release

(Embargoed for release at 11.00am, 24th October 2007 )

  1. The latest Auditor General's report has confirmed what the UPC has always castigated, namely- the wanton unconstitutional and illegal mismanagement and abuse of public finances by NRM leaders and their hand picked technocrats in furtherance of personal aggrandizement and as part of political patronage.
  2. In the chilling, report a total of 1.6 trillion shillings is reported to have been "lent out" by government to certain investors. The UPC is on record to have protested the illegal cash donations called loans given by Museveni NRM to Bassajjabalaba, Tri-Star, Phoenix logistics; BM Technical Services, Meera investments and other so called investors with without the authority of Parliament as required by the Constitution and other laws.
  3. These donations and cash bailouts did not only violate the legal regime in this country but have far reaching economic, political and social consequences. Economically, this illegal cash bonanza was given in a discriminatory manner which favoured certain investors against others in the same sector. This discrimination destroyed the very essence of competition which lies at the heart of a liberalised and market driven economy like ours. The cash bail outs impact negatively on free enterprise competition and efficiency and promote speculation at the expense of efficient and competitive economic management.
  4. Politically, the cash bail outs are a conduit for the NRM to corruptly use public funds to entrench itself in power so as to continue to mismanage the economy and politics of this country.
  5. Socially, these bail outs and donations like the land bonanza create a new class of super rich Ugandans who seek to dominate public life and continue to impoverish the rest of society. This new class built on patronage and corruption, is a source of conflict and tension in our society.
  6. The government now proposes to consolidate the impunity with which it has mismanaged the national economy by asking Parliament to write off this illegally incurred debt as a bad debt. UPC calls upon parliament not to soil its hand by endorsing this gross illegality.
  7. Instead, UPC calls upon Parliament to set up a special select committee to thoroughly investigate this scam and in particular the committee should:-
  8. Investigate unravel and list full details of persons who have authorised the cash donations and bail outs.
  9. Unearth and list details of all the beneficiaries of these bailouts and donations countrywide.
  10. Identify all civil servants and public officials who have had a hand and benefited from this scam.
  11. Following the report of this special committee of Parliament, the Director of Public Prosecutions and IGG should immediately prosecute all public officials including civil servants who have occasioned financial loss to this country. The so called investors who benefited from these bleeding of-public-finances should also be prosecuted.
  12. For its part, Parliament should censure all political leaders who have had a hand in violating the Constitution and our laws by authorising, condoning and covering up this illegal scam.
  13. If the present Parliament, IGG, DPP and NRM government fail to bring to book the perpetuators of these wanton economic crimes, the Uganda Peoples Congress shall take leadership in the matter. The future UPC government will set up a Commission to investigate this and other scams perpetuated during decades of NRM misrule. The Commission shall have powers to seize all the stolen funds and assets and to prosecute every person implicated in the two decades of NRM plunder.
  14. The UPC calls upon all its members and all people of good will to gather all the information related to these financial scandals, secure it and in confidence pass it on to the party for necessary action.

For God and my Country

Mama Miria Kalule Obote

President, Uganda Peoples Congress