Queries as govt officials fail to account for Shs3.5b

The report attributed this to the failure by managements to appraise and enforce the internal controls regarding accountability for funds advanced for micro-projects activities.

“I advised OPM [Office of the Prime Minister] to ensure that the Accounting Officers adequately account for the funds released for the support to the micro-projects,” reads part of the report released in June 2022.

“The unaccounted for funds are likely to be mismanaged due to delayed accountability and there is a risk that the funds may not have been utilised for the intended purposes. The Accounting Officers attributed the failure to account to the ongoing program activities and delayed submission of accountabilities by the respective staff,” the report adds.

Mr Jim Mugunga, the spokesperson of the Finance Ministry, said they, unfortunately, cannot do anything to force these accounting officers to either refund or provide the accountability of these funds.
Mr Mugunga said Parliament is the only national body that will reign on the accounting officers who failed to account for the funds under question.

“Since the AG presented the report to Parliament we are hopeful that they (Parliament) will summon these individuals and make them explain,” he said.

Breakdown
The local government spent Shs2.82 billion unaccounted for with a breakdown of Shs1.98 billion on administrative expenses, Shs594.7 million on Parish Development Model (PDM) and Shs284.5 million on support for organised groups for improvement of people’s livelihood.

Likewise, sports federations and associations spent Shs270 million; UNMC Shs1.2 billion; Hoima Regional Referral Hospital Shs58.8 million; Lira Regional Referral Hospital Shs35 million; Moroto Regional Referral Hospital Shs29.9 million; and PIBID failed to account for Shs42 million.

Presidential Initiative on Banana Industrial Development Project (PIBID) PIBID is a flagship project of the government that was established by President Museveni in 2005 with the aim of adding value to bananas, establishing a secondary processing plant, which turns matooke chips into matooke flour with a capacity of one tonne per hour. 

During his audit, Mr John Muwanga, the Auditor General,  said he was not provided with details of output during the period, but his analysis of revenue reported during the year shows only Shs295m was attained against a budget of Shs2.757b. 

“This implies the plant is grossly under utilised. Of the Shs295m that was reported as collections from operations, only Shs99m was banked. Out of the unbanked revenue of Shs196 million only Shs153.9m was accounted for in form of cash payments leaving a balance of Shs42m unaccounted for. There is a risk that this amount was not put to proper use,” the report further reads.

For Moroto Regional Referral Hospital, the AG said the hospital had a Shs2.2 billion off-budget financing. Of this, only Shs1.7 billion was spent living Shs565.4 million unspent.

“It was observed that Shs29.9 million remained unaccounted for under the World Health Organisation (WHO),” he noted. 

In Hoima Regional Referral Hospital, of the total receipts of Shs9.5 billion, 97 percent translating to Shs9.3 billion was spent, resulting in an unspent balance of Shs213,026,507, which was swept to the consolidated fund account. 

“This affected the staff recruitment and payment of pension. Shs58.8 million remained unaccounted for by the end of the financial year,” the reports indicated.

The fuel expenditure amounting to Shs35.2 million that was deposited in United Bank of Africa (UBA) cards was the centre of the unaccounted funds at Lira Regional Referral Hospital.

For UNMC, the AG said: “I noted that during the year under review, management made the necessary adjustments to the opening reserves and receivables (July 1, 2020) to recognise the unaccounted for advances of Shs1,274,315,720, which formed a basis for qualification of opinion on the Council’s financial statements for the Financial Year ending 30th June 2020.”

Accounting officers face jail
Speaking to Monitor yesterday, Mr Medard Lubega Sseggona, a Constitutional lawyer and the chairperson of the Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee-PAC, in response, said the accounting officials under question will refund the unaccounted-for funds, and face prosecution which may result in jail.

“They will appear before the Local Governments Accounts Committee, which is now chaired by my brother Gilbert Olanyah, and answer, but if they will not account, they will be prosecuted, others will be ordered to refund and even others may go up to Luzira [maximum prison] depending on how their cases will be,” he said.

“When handling these cases, we categorise them into two, the first one is where the accounting officer stole the money and where they failed to supervise those that were doing the work. In scenarios where the accounting officers stole the money, we recommend his prosecution and stripping of his powers, but where they failed to supervise their juniors, we order them to refund but can as well be stripped of their powers,” he added.

In case the prosecuted accounting officer fails to refund the stolen funds, Mr Segona said their properties are attached and sold until the money is recovered.

Officials speak out
Mr Ben Kumumanya, the Permanent secretary of the Ministry of Local Government who briefly responded to the queries on behalf of the local governments, said it is too early to conclude that the officials failed to account for the funds since they are required to account 60 days after it has been released to them.  

The latest audit report was however, released in December last year.

In the same development, Dr Bernard Patrick Ogwel, the secretary of the National Sports Council (NCS), a body responsible for regulating all sports activities, said he had not yet accessed the report which has left an unidentified number of sports associations and federations under spotlight.

Mr Muwanga, in his 2022 report said the unaccounted for funds “are likely to be mismanaged due to delayed accountability and there is risk that the funds may not have been utilised for the intended purposes.” 

During the audits, Mr Muwanga said the accounting officers attributed the failure to account to the ongoing programme activities and delayed submission of accountabilities by the respective staff. 

In terms of daily expenses, all entities combined spent Shs10 million daily without providing accountability.
The Parliamentary Committee on Commission on Statutory Authority and State Enterprise, which has since last year been scrutinising the 2021 Auditor General’s report, on Monday ordered for a fresh audit into the operations of the National Water and Sewerage Corporation.

By not furnishing the AG team with all relevant documents, the accounting officers in “question” disobeyed the Public Finance and Management Act, which tasks every accounting officer to provide accountability within two months after the end of a financial year.

Mr Kumumanya, however, said the accounting officers must account for the funds sent to their entities after 60 days. 

“If it is embezzled then that is criminality. There are laws in Uganda which recommend action,” he said. 

Previous year
In the FY2020/21, officials also failed to account for funds amounting to Shs4.7 billion. Of this, Shs3.37 billion was by 11 local governments, Shs1.6 billion by the Court of Judicator, $2,564 (Shs9.4m) by the Tb Preventive Therapy for HIV-Infected Alcohol Users in Uganda programme and $9,658 (Shs35.5m)  in the Resistance Testing project that was implemented by the Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST).

Audits conducted
In the year under review, the Office of the Auditor General had planned to carry out 3,725 audits, which were later revised to 3,996. Of these, a total of 1940 audits were conducted while 2,056 audits were under progress by the time the report was published in June 2022. This implies that either relatively low or high amounts of funds were not accounted for in the period.

Administrative expenses in local governments
Name    Amount
Amuru    Shs114.6M
Apac    Shs109.7M
Arua city    Shs47.3M
Bukwo    Shs27.4M
Bullisa    Shs240.4M
Busia    Shs54.4M
Butebo    Shs38.5M
Gulu City    Shs464.9M
Katakwi    Shs341.4M
Lamwo    Shs31.8M
Moroto    Shs32.1M
Moroto municipal council    Shs43.8M
Nakaseke    Shs18.5M
Napak    Shs255M
Pader    Shs65.7M
Packwach    Shs14.6M
Total    Shs1.981B

Unaccounted for Funds in FY2020/2021
Name    Amount   (Billions)
Abim    Shs1.41B
Bugweri    Shs0.25B
Bukedea    Shs0.01B
Hoima MC    Shs0.06B
Kikuube    Shs0.07B
Kiryandongo    Shs0.01B
Kole    Shs0.26B
Madi-Okollo    Shs0.05B
Moroto    Shs0.03B
Moroto Mc    Shs1.19B
Oyam    Shs0.03B
Total    Shs3.37B

Unaccounted for PDM funds 
Local govt    Amount
Lugazi    Shs7M
Gulu city    Shs11.2M
Kitgumu    Shs241M
Nwoya    Shs276.1M
Amuru    Shs58.8M
Total    Shs594.7M
Unaccounted for funds for groups on people’s livelihood 
Local govt    Amount
Bullisa    Shs8M
Hoima    Shs58M
Kayunga    Shs95M
Kibaale     Shs21M
Kyenjonjo    Shs10.5M
Masindi    Shs13M
Nakaseke    Shs48M
Total    Shs248.5M
*Source: Extracted from the auditor general’s report 2021/2022