OPM scam: Just get back our money

The grand scandal. Fraud, outright theft of public funds and corruption have become permanent features in the Auditor General’s reports. Parliament should wake up and cleanse the system before it is too late.

But in trying to explain why we have this grand theft in government today, Fr Simon Lokodo, one the frivolous ministers, argues that it’s because the NRM government has spent [the last 26 years] ensuring that there is peace, security and stability and revamping the economy. That the critical bottlenecks of ideological disorientation and a culture that lacked democracy were not critically handled.

That this glaring breach has led to serious consequences as now manifesting in the widespread corruption and economic sabotage. But as long as Parliament continues to be irrelevant in the fight against corruption, I am afraid we are likely to see more of these scandals. The OPM inquiry continues.

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Flowers
Amama Mbabazi
Whether it’s for political expedience rather than moral considerations, nobody knows, but the fact that Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi told Parliament that the government would foot all the funeral expenses for former Erute South MP John Odit, an opposition politician was a welcome move. I heard that the president even paid his medical bills. It’s a clear message that it’s time to bury the hatchet and move on. That, those in power today and those in opposition need to stop fighting and think together. Multi-party politics is not about disagreeing all the time. RIP John Odit.

Frowns
Bwikwe Parent
The reality of rising cases of child abuse in our country continues to bite hard in almost all the districts. It’s nearly unthinkable, but every year thousands of children become victims of crime — whether it’s through kidnapping, violent attacks, or sexual abuse. Some children have been sacrificed in endless ritual murders, tortured and even killed by their parents over theft. This week Daily Monitor reported that Police in Buikwe District were hunting a man who is alleged to have burnt his son’s legs over theft of a mobile phone. This man deserves frowns. The suspect reportedly lost his cool after his son, together with his friends, allegedly stole a phone from their class teacher.