Accept Bigirimana on Umeme board- Notu
In limelight. The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Mr Pius Bigirimana, addresses the media in Kampala on June 25. PHOTO BY STEPHEN OTAGE
What you need to know:
Basis. National Organisation of Trade Unions claims that the Gender ministry permanent secretary representation will protect workers’ interests in Umeme.
The chairperson of National Organisation of Trade Unions (Notu), Mr Usher Owere, has given a 14-day ultimatum to Umeme to confirm Gender ministry permanent secretary Pius Bigirimana as workers’ representative on the power distributor’s board.
He said Mr Bigirimana’s representation will protect workers’ interests in Umeme.
“We have given Umeme two weeks to execute directives by ensuring that Mr Bigirimana joins the (Umeme) board without any further delay,” Mr Owere said, warning of unspecified “serious consequences.”
Mr Owere on Monday said the two-week ultimatum is to enable them implement both the presidential and Attorney General (AG) directive to have Mr Bigirimana on the Umeme board.
“We have pumped a lot of money in Umeme through the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), but we do not know how much interest we get from there because of individuals who are benefiting and they do not want power tariffs to come down,” Mr Owere said in a statement.
The workers’ Fund owns 23.2 per cent (376 million shares) in Umeme and Mr Bigirimana is the permanent secretary of Gender and Labour parent ministry that oversees NSSF.
In 2018, President Museveni ordered investigation into the circumstances surrounding the rejection of Mr Bigirimana as workers’ representative on Umeme board.
In May this year, the Deputy Attorney General, Mr Mwesigwa Rukutana, advised that whereas Umeme’s board had an obligation to act in the company’s best interests, a decision to reject the permanent secretary outright breached the law and principles of natural justice. He did not specify which law.
“The board of Umeme should review the resolution put to the annual general meeting and hold an extra-ordinary general meeting to ratify the nomination of Mr Bigirimana because the decision was taken in disregard of the legal rights of NSSF,” Mr Rukutana wrote.
Umeme Spokesperson Stephen Ilongole said he would not comment on the matter.
Mr Owere claimed, without providing evidence, that workers’ interests in Umeme were at stake.
NSSF nominated Mr Bigirimana as its representative on the Umeme board on April 15, 2018, but he was rejected.
