Why Museveni removed Kamukama from PPS job
Outgoing Principal Private Secretary to the President Molly Kamukama with Commissioner Robert Sebunya (centre) and lawyer John Bosco Suuza at the Commissioner of Inquiry into land matters on May 15, 2018. FILE PHOTO
The decision to take President Museveni’s Principal Private Secretary out of State House was informed by several reasons, State House insiders have told Daily Monitor.
Ms Molly Kamukama, who had been the President’s topmost secretary since November 2016, was in the Cabinet reshuffle released by State House on Saturday evening, moved to the docket of Economic Monitoring under the Office of the President.
Dr Kenneth Omona, who has been the deputy treasurer at the National Resistance Movement (NRM) party Secretariat, was named to replace Ms Kamukama.
Multiple sources we spoke to intimated that ‘things heated up’ with the appointment of Lt Col Edith Nakalema to head the State House Anti-Corruption Unit in November last year.
“Nakalema did not want to leave State House. She reported so many ‘false’ corruption cases against Kamukama’s staff. So we think that the President wanted to ease the tension and also allow Edith to fight corruption outside of State House,” the source said, adding: “There are many corruption cases reported to the IGG across the country. Now you will see corruption fight expanding to many other places.”
We have not independently verified the corruption claims against members of Ms Kamukama’s staff or herself, nor have they been taken to any court.
Private negotiations
Another source said subsequent to the ‘discomfort’ from the Anti-Corruption Unit, there were protracted negotiations between State House and a team of members, internally referred to as “NRM Warriors” - an informal grouping of Mr Museveni fanatics - to move Ms Kamukama to the NRM Secretariat as party secretary general.
“The NRM Warriors kept on asking the President that she is moved to the Secretariat for more than three months,” the source further said.
This newspaper in August reported that members of the NRM Warriors were tipped to benefit from the Cabinet reshuffle.
The members include Koboko Municipality MP Evelyn Anite, also the Privatisation and Investment State minister; Dokolo North lawmaker Paul Amoru, Raphael Magyezi of Igara West, Usuk’s Peter Ogwang, and Ndorwa West MP David Bahati, who is the State minister for Planning. Others are Ms Kamukama, MP Moses Balyeku (Jinja Municipality West), Judith Nabakooba (Mityana District Woman MP), Michael Tusiime (Mbarara Municipality), and Workers’ MP Arinaitwe Rwakajara.
Some of the individuals would be rewarded for frontline action during the contentious 2017 Constitution amendment to scrap the presidential age limit and their subsequent clandestine activities to secure victory at the Supreme Court.
Whereas some top technocrats at State House yesterday said Ms Kamukama was shipped into Cabinet to allow her mobilise for President Museveni in 2021, this newspaper understands from other sources that the new docket was to provide a soft landing.
“As PPS it would look awkward to see her mobilise for the President. She has been moved to Economic monitoring to allow her do politics ahead of 2021,” the source said.
Ms Kamukama tweeted yesterday: “I want to thank the President for the renewed trust and confidence. I look forward to embracing the duties of my new deployment with the same energy and enthusiasm that I have always brought to every opportunity to serve my country.”
