Parliament to probe KCCA jobs

This is after the Lord Mayor revealed that enforcement officers are often randomly recruited.

The parliamentary Committee on Public Service and Local Government is planning an investigation into allegations that a number of employees at the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) were hired without necessary qualifications.

The move follows information obtained by the committee last week when Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago and KCCA boss Jennifer Musisi appeared to explain their bickering, with the former claiming that his work was being frustrated by the latter.

“If they call for applications for enforcement officers, what are the qualifications and where do they train them from? They only get them and give them uniforms, get them onto pick-ups to go down town for operations,” Mr Lukwago said. “That is the reason you see traders manhandled.”

Ms Musisi, however, said KCCA could not spend a lot of money on temporary staff.

“Those staff are not permanent. Many of them are on short contracts of three to six months until [Ministry of] Public Service gets us permanent workers. So we cannot inject money into giving them equipment or training them until the ministry has finished appointing them as permanent staff,” Ms Musisi said.

The committee chairperson, Ms Florence Kintu, at the weekend, said the committee would look into the matter after consultations.

This newspaper understands that KCCA, which is in the process of rebranding, has sacked some 40 workers over corruption and many of these have been replaced in an unclear manner.

akiyaga@ug.nationmedia.com