The Speaker Anita Among (pictured) has led MPs in protesting the move by Ministry of Finance to reduce Parliament’s budget by 50%, describing such a decision as humiliating and demeaning to the Legislature.
“Our deduction of 50%, shall we be paid salary? You even have the courtesy to put it in bold, on a statutory vote that Parliament shouldn’t get money. It is good that the responsible Minister has given in the apology and this should be the first and last and I am also going to write to the Secretary to treasury and tell him to respect the Committees of Parliament,” said Among.
The Speaker’s remarks followed a concern raised by Nathan Byanyima (Bukanga North) who wondered what had befallen the Ministry of Finance in the previous years, the occupants of the office of Secretary to Treasury were people of high caliber and wondered why Ramathan Ggoobi, the current Secretary to Treasury would make allegations in the Committee that Parliament has no powers to alter budget submitted by the Ministry of Finance.
Byanyima said, “But when the Secretary to Treasury goes to a Committee of Parliament and says that we have no role to imply in the budget and appropriation, it defeats my understanding, has this country changed? And when the Secretary to Treasury says we have no role in appropriation, I don’t see why we are wasting our time going into the budget it doesn’t make sense. Every year in, whenever we say don’t spend money on this, it is spent within the 3%. I have seen a paper that the Parliamentary budget will be cut by 50%. Where does such a person get powers? There is a rule that we must respect each other, treat other people the way you want to be treated. We have been demeaned to nothing.”
Joseph Ssewungu (Kalungu West) called on Parliament to handle the issue of Gggobi serious alleging that when the Committee of Education summoned him for a meeting, he refused to appear and despite calls from the Minister of Finance, Ggoobi still declined to attend the said meeting.
“He doesn’t respect MPs and Committees of Parliament and yet, he is the issuing officers of any funds of Government. The Late Keith Muhakanizi, former Secretary to treasury would appear any time Parliament would invite him in the Committee but Ggoobi, I don’t know where he gets his strength and powers from. Once you remove appropriation from Parliament, then what are we doing here, we are rendered null and void we aren’t useful here. We need to take a firm stand on Secretary to treasury, otherwise, he doesn’t respect Parliament,” said Ssewungu.
Muwanga Kivumbi (Butambala County) who doubles as Chairperson PAC informed Parliament that Ggoobi made the remarks during an interaction between the Ministry of Finance and PAC where the two sides were discussing Government handling of consolidated accounts and Committee pointed out that much as Government has consistently been coming to Parliament with a budget of Shs52Trn or Shs48Trn, a trend analysis for the last five years and the budget’s actual expenditure of Government matching revenue and expenditure indicated that Government has never exceeded Shs45Trn.
“And then we asked the Secretary to Treasury, what is the essence of you consistently presenting to the country a rosy picture of Shs52Trn, Shs51Trn well knowing not in any single year, since the history of this country have you spent above Shs45Trn,” said Muwanga.
Sarah Opendi (Tororo DWR) also claimed that while appearing on NBS TV this morning, Ggoobi alluded to the same sentiments, saying that Parliament has no power of budgeting that this is an Executive function with Opendi remarking, “He said Parliament has no powers to move money from one vote to another because budgeting for this country isn’t our responsibility. That it is the Executive that knows the priority of this country. So, what is our role as Parliament? And the challenge we have in this country is picking people who haven’t grown in public service and placing them in such sensitive positions because a Secretary to Treasury used to rise from down and when you pick someone from somewhere, they don’t respect leaders.”
