Prime
Tracing the corporation’s woes and property
What you need to know:
Investigations into alleged fuel and vehicle abuse
Coming out broadly. As details of old investigations continue to grip the country, calls for investigations into recent happenings at the corporation are emerging even more loudly.
Employees fired. A number of staff have reportedly been fired or forced to resign, the reason for the exits vary. While new management says it is cleaning the house of the bad influences of the old management, the affected staff still with in and out claim a witch-hunt.
More rot. Claims that long-grounded vehicles are still receiving fuel and appearing on the fuel log of the corporation and the recently rolling of the official MDs vehicle by a none UBC staff, who was allegedly driving under the influence, tell of a story that is yet to get off the cover and analysis pages of the newspapers.
This week saw the first group of former Uganda Broadcasting Corporation officials face prosecution over misdeed on their part while holding office at the national broadcaster. Then, there was the inevitable resignation of Presidency and Kampala Minister Kabakumba Masiko (formerly for information) after police allege it had recovered a UBC transmitter at her Masindi-based radio station, Kings FM. It also emerged that the station was connected to a UBC mast illegally and that the building the station was housed in was UBC property.
MPs had collected a sufficient number of signatures to censure her. The NRM Caucus and Cabinet also advised her to resign after all was crystal clear she was in the wrong. Earlier, on Tuesday, former UBC board chairman Chris Katuramu and Mr Emoru appeared before the Anti-Corruption Court on charges of abuse of office in connection with the sale of UBC land to businessman Basajjabalaba.
Court summons were also issued to former UBC Managing Director Edward Musinguzi Mugas, who was not in court under unclear circumstances. Founded after a merger of the Uganda Television and Radio Uganda, UBC was once the pride and joy of Uganda. Following the enactment of the Uganda Broadcasting Corporation Act, 2004, it was thought operations at the national broadcaster would improve. Government continued to pump billions of shillings of taxpayers’ money with the hope of revamping it.
It now turns out that UBC is one of the most ‘looted’ government body in Uganda. At first, everything seemed rosy until President Museveni stationed part of his Presidential Press Unit at its offices. According to intelligence briefs from PPS officials to the President, the institution was ‘dying’ of ‘rot’ with graft swept under the carpet.
UBC property had been stolen, broadcast equipment had gone missing, sold or were illegally being used by persons working or previously working with the organisation. Mr Museveni is said to have held several meetings with top UBC officials, giving them opportunities to explain the disturbing reports he had received.
These meetings seemed to be going nowhere. According to a source at the broadcaster, a disgusted Mr Museveni, after one of the last meetings, refused to take the usual group photo with the officials.
Mid this year, then Information and National Guidance Minister Kabakumba, after arrests of top officials, disbanded the entire UBC board led by Mr Katuramu, Prof. Hannignton Ssengendo, Fred Bamwesigye, Wandera, Tom Okurut, Oola and Dr Daisy Namono.
Mr Mugasa was fired and a commissioner in the Gender and Social Development Ministry, Mr Paul Kihika, installed as acting managing director. Ms Kabakumba described the situation at the broadcaster at the time as ‘rotten’ and predicted most of the officials would end up ‘being prosecuted’ for corruption, abuse of office and gross misconduct. Ironically, she would later be forced to resign from Cabinet after it was discovered she too hand her ‘hands in the cookie jar’.
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Findings on UBC’s holdings
Almost everything the corporation owned during the transition from UTV and Radio Uganda to UBC, went missing. The status of huge chunks of prime UBC property in Kampala suburbs is unclear. UBC property in Bugolobi, Ntinda, Naguru and Industrial Area are on the market with individuals like businessman Hassan Basajjabalaba, Mary Karooro Okurut (currently Information minister) and Margaret Muhanga (former Kabarole Woman MP) being cited as being in possession of them.
On the orders of the President, over 12 acres of UBC land on plot M47 Kibira Road have been leased to five companies for 49 years for specific projects. It later turned out the valuation reports for these property had huge variations, even though the property neighbour each other.
One group, SinoEast Africa, was told to pay Shs1.1 billion per acre while another group Extreme Innovations Limited paid Shs957 million for two acres. Some of the investors are said to have, instead, sold the properties they had leased to unsuspecting individuals.
The then Information minister Kirunda Kivejinja, had specifically warned the five companies to stick to the agreed terms of their leases. Failure to do so would lead to the properties being repossessed by UBC. His instructions were ignored.
Land located on Plots 8-10, 12-16, and 18-20 Faraday Road, Bugolobi were also sold off to Basajja who later sold it to Deo and Sons Properties Ltd for double its original value. The case is in court. The status of 350-acres of land in Dakabela area, Soroti District is unclear. The corporation said it applied for a freehold title from the Uganda Land Commission in 2007 but it is yet to get it. Meanwhile, several local politicians in the area are using the property illegally.
And in Mbale, 13 acres of land in Namatala could be considered gone as several groups and individuals continue to wrangle over ownership. Efforts are being made by UBC to reclaim it but with very little success.
Additionally, several companies using UBC mast in Kololo are said to owe it huge sums of money. As for the masts in different upcountry areas, the national broadcaster is said to have lost complete control of most of them, leaving shrewd private broadcasters smiling.
It is alleged huge sums of money allocated to UBC have been used but little or no accountability provided. For example in the run-up to Chogm, Shs1.7b was apparently used to buy a broadcasting truck, without following PPDA rules. The truck later turned out not to be of the required standard and even cost less than the amount spent. Another Shs14b meant to purchase broadcasting equipment was never received by UBC.
