Parliament has re-allocated Shs750 billion after revisiting the Appropriation Bill, 2024 which President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni objected to assent to.
In the 2024/2025 Budget handed earlier, legislators had allotted the Shs750 billion to areas that they described as important. These included amongst others procurement of ambulances, upkeep of bridges, building of sub-county headquarters and assist to households with earnings producing tasks amongst others.
At a sitting of the House on Tuesday, 02 July 2024, the Speaker Anita Among learn the President’s letter which highlighted the explanations for his rejection of the invoice.
Museveni cited what he described as indiscipline in budgeting, sabotage of nationwide priorities and corruption amongst lawmakers.
The Bill, which initially sought to authorise public expenditure from the Consolidated Fund was first handed on 16 May2024 and later, despatched to the President for approval on 31 May 2024.
In his letter, the President additionally expressed his disapproval accusing the MPs of interfering with the constitutional mandate of the Finance Minister in budgeting.
“There are errors right here. These are indiscipline in budgeting, sabotaging the nationwide priorities and now the suspicion of large corruption. I’m subsequently, writing to request that this follow stops,” the President said in his letter.
Museveni cited the Shs440 billion utilised to reconstruct 127KM of the Kampala-Masaka Road including diverting Shs3.71 trillion over 4 years is equal to aborting 9 comparable main highway tasks.
The Speaker dominated that the House constitutes itself right into a Committee of Supply for the reason that Budget Committee was not but absolutely constituted.
Erute South MP Hon. Jonathan Odur and Butambala District Women Representative, Hon. Aisha Kabanda supported her proposal including that the Budget Committee lacked the ethical authority to analyze the problems listed by Museveni as a result of corruption accusations.
However, Members of Parliament didn’t take frivolously the President’s accusations.
They have been notably displeased that the Executive department had piled blame on Parliament for deviating on the federal government priorities.
Kira Municipality MP, Hon. Semujju Nganda criticised the President’s proposal to prioritize ROKO on the expense of different public wants.
“The President’s precedence is that you simply transfer cash from the ambulances and, regional referral hospitals to create Shs300bn for ROKO, a non-public firm”, he stated.
However, State Minister for Finance, Hon. Hennery Musasizi stated that, ‘these are funds for presidency obligations underneath the share subscription settlement in servicing ROKO Bills of Exchange, and cost of EFT financial institution expenses of Bank of Uganda, amongst others’.
Napak District Woman MP, Hon. Faith Nakut implored the House to seek for solutions to the questions raised by the President insisting that the Budget Committee had accomplished the proper factor.
This was re-echoed by the previous Chairperson of the Budget Committee, Hon. Patrick Isiagi who insisted that the allocations by Parliament have been made to fund important sectors for the nice of the nation. He later conceded to the reallocations.
“But given the steering of the President on the priorities and dedication to stay to the finances, I concede”, he said.
The proposal was put to a vote and was unanimously seconded by the MPs, permitting the Minister of Finance, Planning, and Economic Development, Hon. Matia Kasaija to maneuver a movement for the House to rethink the Bill.
The reconsidered Appropriation Bill authorised an expenditure of over Shs72.136 trillion reflecting a Shs14trillion improve from the preliminary estimates of Shs58.34 trillion.
The finances consists of Shs18.9 trillion for recurrent expenditures and Shs34.7 trillion for growth.
