State for Planning, David Bahati
A number of MPs have opposed Government plan to spend Shs336.86bn to purchase radios for students’ learning, describing the deal as too bogus to require even a single shilling of taxpayers’ money.
This is after Minister of State for Planning, David Bahati appeared before the Budget Committee to defend the Shs6.6Trn supplementary funding, to finance the budget deficit.
Bahati said that the Shs337bn is meant for the purchase of radios to cater for learning of the 14million students who are home.
Richard Othieno (West Budama South) questioned the program wondering why radios should be bought to facilitate learning through radio yet Government had announced that students would resume studies by March 2020.
Charles Illukor (Kumi County) wondered why government only dedicated only Shs72Bn for school reopening, yet radios are costing so much, and questioned what is more important than the other?.
Bahati replied, “We can’t continue doing things the same way. Yes the timetable is there, but it isn’t fixed. To keep children at home without any learning, it is really dangerous for our children. This isn’t going to be only for two months, it is an asset for homes. People will use even when things stabilize.”
Derrick Namissi, Acting Principle Economist at the Ministry of Education told the Committee that long distance learning isn’t going to go away even when classes resume and the Ministry had planned to evaluate the radio programme two months after candidate students have received their radios.
His explanation prompted more questions with Kenneth Lubogo (Bulamogi County) asking if the two months passed for the review and if the radios will be delivered on time.
“If someone is talking about assembling 5million radios, we know how much time it took to distribute masks, but now we are talking about 9million radios, what period will it take for the country to get radios? There was the circulation of reading material, it a failure. All attempts where it involves government distributing, masks failed, distribution of reading materials failed, let us not take this country for a ride, are we really convinced that what we are doing is worth to be done and commit over Shs400Bn to radios,” said Lubogo.
Illukor asked if assembling the radios would take two weeks.
“This is urgency; do you already have an assembling plant, if just important and procurement process, what is your motive?”
Amos Lugoloobi, Chairperson Budget Committee asked to what extent Government was going to pamper the nation, wondering if the Executive is now running a welfare state.
Cecilia Ogwal said all evidence on the radio project points to somebody trying to do some smart business on Ugandans.
“I feel somebody is taking us for a ride and they are taking it as a committee of rubber stamping. There is lack of integrity and lack of truth on this issue of radio,” she said, adding: “The practicability of utilization of this one radio is bogus. People can’t afford paraffin, how are you going to expect them to buy batteries? The practicality is a non-starter.”
