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Some civil servants have fake academic qualifications – IGG
IGG Beti Kamya
What you need to know:
- The IGG Beti Kamya says we have an economy that is run by at best, mediocres and at worst, people who are not qualified.
The Inspector General of Government (IGG), Ms Betty Kamya, has said her office has received several complaints of district service commissions recruiting civil servants who lack the requisite qualifications.
Ms Kamya, while speaking at an event under the theme: “Fundamentals of Integrity and Anti-corruption in Kampala”, said their investigations revealed that such workers are “graduates from Nasser Road in Kampala,” with forged academic qualifications.
Nasser Road is closely associated with forged documents.
“The workers hold fake certificates or were not the best suited candidates who turned up for the job. It's a very serious crisis. So we have brought this to the attention of the President, and I understand that Cabinet is about to discuss it,” Ms Kamya said.
She added: “This explains why we have shoddy work, collapsing buildings, and those that catch fire due to fake engineers.”
Ms Kamya explained that some fake engineers use poor quality materials after paying kickbacks to get contracts.
“To a larger extent, we have an economy that is run by at best mediocre and at worst people who are not qualified. In this case, the contractor has to find a way of delivering a product with the little resources he has because most of the resources have been shared out due to corruption. This leads to shoddy work since poor quality materials or less materials are used to construct substandard roads. They use unqualified personnel. We have fake doctors and fake teachers everywhere,” Ms Kamya said.
She said employing unqualified personnel has led to a brain drain where the country’s cream seek greener pastures abroad.
“Hospitals in South Africa, in Nairobi, in the UK, in even Turkey, have got very good Ugandan doctors who could be here. So the situation is really bad,” she said.
Ms Kamya also revealed that there is a need for mindset change so that community members stop glorifying corruption.
“If you get rich, they applaud you. You are smart. If you don't get rich quickly on a government job, they despise you. They call you weak, and stupid. So we glorify corruption. We don't ask where the money came from, as long as people are giving us…Our society largely promotes, nurtures, and glorifies corruption,” Ms Kamya revealed.
On the declaration of assets, she said her office lacks the resources to verify whether or not the declarations are genuine.
Mr Joel Wanjala, a member of the general public, said some of the corrupt individuals are connected and powerful that when you expose them, they fight hard to see that you lose your job.
"We do things just because of greed. People are now living beyond their means. The cost of fighting corruption is very high to the individuals who come up with the courage and say, ‘this is happening’," Mr Wanjala said.
A report by the Auditor General showed that about 10,000 government workers are illegally on the payroll and a total of Shs53 billion was paid to them in one year.
According to an Inspector General of Government (IGG) report, Uganda loses about Shs10 trillion annually to corruption.
