'Apologise to Ugandans', Kadaga tells Pastor Kayanja
A photo combo showing Miracle Centre Cathedral lead pastor, Robert Kayanja (left) and the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for East African Community Affairs, Ms Rebecca Kadaga (right). PHOTOS/FILE
The First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for East African Community Affairs, Ms Rebecca Kadaga has asked Miracle Centre Cathedral lead pastor, Robert Kayanja to apologise to Ugandans for allegedly “distorting” the legacy of the 10th Parliament which she chaired.
“Pastor Kayanja, you owe an apology to the people of Uganda and the 10th Parliament whose legacy you are distorting,” Ms Kadaga who was Speaker of the 10th Parliament said in a statement on her twitter handle.
This was after New Vision quoted Pastor Kayanja faulting Parliament for the increasing commodity prices, saying they had all the powers and responsibility to curb it.
"The 10th Parliament let us down as a country. There was a chance for them to work hard and appropriate money to construct the country's oil refinery, but they did not," Pastor Kayanja is quoted as saying while preaching during an Easter celebrations service at Miracle Centre Cathedral Rubaga, Kampala yesterday.
According to him, if the 10th Parliament had appropriated money to put up an oil refinery, the country would today be exporting oil instead of citizens buying fuel dearly.
But according to the Kamuli Woman MP, no budget for a refinery was presented or rejected by the Parliament she chaired.
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“No Budget for a refinery was presented or rejected. Please substantiate; which meeting, which sitting and which session this happened,” Ms Kadaga added.
The development comes amidst public outcry over the skyrocketing commodity prices.
But as citizens, religious leaders and parliamentarians continue to ask the government to curb the skyrocketing prices in Uganda, the only help in sight is a planned expansion of the production of crude palm oil in Buvuma, Kalangala, Bundibugyo, greater Masaka and other areas.
Minister of State for Trade Harriet Ntabazi said this will help bring down the prices of commodities that require crude palm oil as inputs, including laundry soap, cooking oil and sugar.
Government ruled out any form of subsidies to cushion citizens from the skyrocketing fuel and commodity prices.
According to Ramathan Ggoobi, secretary in Uganda’s Finance ministry, issuance of subsidies “is bad economics and could get us into more trouble because it takes money to the wrong people”.
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