MPs want presidential banana project scrutinised

Members of the Parliamentary Budget Committee have called for a thorough scrutiny of the Presidential Initiative on Banana Industrial Development (PIBID) so as to prove value for money, saying that after twenty years since its establishment, the project should have already produced fruits.

The MPs were on their two-day monitoring and oversight inspection of the two sections of the project at Nyaruzinga in Bushenyi-Ishaka Municipality and Sanga in Kiruhura District, where they questioned the investment’s production capacity and also cited project mismanagement.

The Manjiya County MP, Mr John Baptist Nambeshe, said that there is no value for money twenty years after the government started investing in the banana project.

“We are here to assess what this particular project has done in the duration of 20 years with the taxpayer’s funds that they have been receiving, but since yesterday [April 4], we have been taken through diversionary tours instead of being told what the returns could be because they are mentioning a Shs3 billion amount of money that was earned courtesy of this project. But we would want to see it reflected in the consolidated fund,” said Mr Nambeshe.

“From the look of things, it seems there are serious issues with this project that require scrutiny. The project should be subjected to scrutiny to know whether we are running as a profit or if it is a mere monster sinking the taxpayer’s money,” he added.

Nambeshe’s comments came after the banana peeling machine failed to peel matooke during the tour of the facility. This attracted questions from a number of MPs, who said that the government spent a lot of money on purchasing the peeling machine.

“A lot of money, including what was supposed to have procured a peeler, but what we see is a mere prototype. You wonder where the money for the procurement of a peeling machine went if they brought a prototype, which is like a lecture room for whoever is to be taken through the process of peeling matooke. The machine doesn’t have the capacity to peel matooke on an industrial scale,” Mr Nambeshe questioned.

Mr Wilfred Nuwagaba, the Ndorwa East MP, told Monitor during an interview of the need to investigate the banana investment.

“I have seen the project but we will need to interrogate the kind of money invested and the return on investment,” she noted.

Mr Opolot Patrick, the committee chairperson, however, commended the project managers for the work done and challenged them to do more to have the capacity to feed and satisfy the markets.

“The project seems to have gone through the research period, and some products are still going through the research process. So, we commend the managers of the project for their effort. We pray that they continue and have more products come to completion. It looks like we shall achieve all the intended benefits, including the intention of the research,” he said.

Efforts by this reporter to get a comment from the project director, Rev. Prof. Florence Isabirye Muranga was futile as the boss was engaged in other activities and not available for the interview.

“The director is quite engaged now. Maybe we shall get another time and you interview her about the matter. I will give you a call,” said Mr Andrew Matovu, the project communications coordinator.