Kadaga accuses Education officials of failing government projects
Speaker Rebecca Kadaga (left) addresses stakeholders during the commissioning of classroom blocks in Kamuli District last week . The district inspector of schools, Mr Ibrahim Kanakulya (centre), and Education ministry’s Herbert Ahimbisibwe (right) look on. PHOTO BY SAM CALEB OPIO
Kamuli- The Speaker of Parliament, Ms Rebecca Kadaga, last Thursday accused officials and bureaucrats of sabotaging government programmes, restraining service delivery and reducing her roles to supervising ‘latrine projects’.
Ms Kadaga while commissioning classroom blocks in the five primary schools of Kamuli Boys, Kavule, Bulondo, Mpakitonyi and Kibeto, all constructed under her Emergency School Construction Fund (ESCF), vowed to deal with the officials accused of tarnishing and frustrating government projects.
Without mentioning names, Ms Kadaga said some ministry of Education officials allegedly ‘swindled’ Shs100m of the Shs2b which she sought under ESCF to improve education in Kamuli.
The Speaker said had it not been her swift intervention, there would have been no work done apart from construction of pitlatrines.
“Those ministry bureaucrats are thieves. I sourced money for 32 schools and they ‘chopped’ Shs100m claiming it was for inspection and wanted me to change from construction of classrooms to pit-latrines,” Ms Kadaga said.
This was in response to a Shs35m shortfall which was meant for the construction of 32 schools but Speaker Kadaga said some officials in the Education ministry reduced the schools to 28.
Ms Kadaga’s anger was further stretched by the revelation that the technical engineer of the project was a native of the area, who after being summoned, saw his successor use the same funds meant for the pitlatrines to construct classroom blocks.
“There is something wrong with our people. Imagine the person who connived to defraud and deprive Kamuli schools was a Musoga. People doing shoddy work are our very own NRM members. This is impunity,” she regretted.
However, she also commended JOFAH Associates, a company in charge of plumbing and other construction activities, for delivering the work in time and ensuring value for money. The Resident District Commissioner, Mr Moses Dumba, however urged Ugandans to emulate the Speaker’s efforts towards developing the education sector especially considering the girl-child.
