The consideration of the 2024/25 Appropriation Bill in Parliament has been temporarily halted by the Budget Committee, following accusations made by several Members of Parliament (MPs) against certain technical officials from the Ministry of Finance. The MPs claim that these officials were intentionally sabotaging their Ministers by submitting conflicting documents related to the upcoming national budget.
The accusations stem from the Ministry of Finance presenting three different sets of documents containing varying figures regarding the 2024/25 national budget. During a Budgetary Committee meeting held on April 26, 2024, Ssemujju Nganda, a member of the Budget Committee, raised concerns about the fictitious nature of the submitted documents.
“The Minister brought ministerial budget estimates of UGX 60 Trillion, he then brought the Appropriation Bill of UGX 58 Trillion and a resource envelope of UGX 53 Trillion. Now, he says just disregard one, disregard two, disregard three, yet this document was laid before Parliament, and it can only be withdrawn and an authentic one laid before Parliament, “Nganda expressed.
The Chairperson of the Budget Committee, Patrick Isiagi, also expressed his doubts about the competence of the technical team responsible for the budget presentation. Isiagi questioned how a team of 20 individuals with expertise in finance could make such glaring errors.
On March 28, 2024, Henry Musasizi, the Minister of State for Finance (General Duties), presented a national budget of Shs58.34 trillion for the 2024/2025 financial year. The budget aimed to prioritize the “full monetization of the Ugandan economy through agriculture, industrialization, expanding and broadening services, digital transformation, and market access.”
In light of the accusations made by the MPs, the Parliament’s Budget Committee decided to halt the consideration of the 2024/25 Appropriation Bill. The allegations of sabotage against the technical officials from the Ministry of Finance have raised concerns about the reliability and accuracy of the budget documents and the impact it may have on the government’s operations and efficiency.
The Budget Committee’s decision to temporarily suspend the bill reflects the need for transparency and accountability in the budgetary process. The committee aims to ensure that an authentic and reliable set of documents are presented before Parliament, ultimately safeguarding the interests of the Ugandan people.
The Ministry of Finance is expected to address the concerns raised by the MPs and provide accurate budget figures that align with the proposed national budget.
