As the 2017/18 Financial Year nears to an end, the Government of Uganda can’t wait to procure CCTV cameras to fight crime in the forthcoming financial year.
Government is now seeking Shs910bn supplementary expenditure approval by Parliament, with Shs60bn earmarked t to procure CCTV cameras for Police.
David Bahati, the State Minister of Finance has already tendered in his request to Parliament’s Budget Committee.
Shs419bn out of the Shs910bn has already been spent, but is now before Parliament for retrospective approval as provided in Section 25(1) of the Public Finance Management Act, 2015.
The Act allows government to spend up to 3% of the total approved budget, and table a request for retrospective approval within four months.
However, the remaining Shs481bn is above the 3% provision and therefore require prior approval by Parliament.
The Budget Committee Chairperson Amos Lugoloobi says: “The Ministry appears to have surpassed the 3 per cent request and this needs prior approval by Parliament.”
It should be noted that President Yoweri Museveni has been promising CCTV cameras to fight crime in the wake of runaway criminality in Kampala and Uganda at large.
The insecurity in the country recently saw Museveni shake security agencies by replacing Kale Kayihura with Okoth Ochola as the Inspector General of Police while Gen. Elly Tumwine was made the new Security Minister replacing Lt Gen Henry Tumukunde.
However, Butambala MP Muhammad Kivumbi is opposed to the request, saying that the source of funds must be declared.
He said: “The law requires that they show us the source of funding before they proceed. Are they cutting money from other sectors?”
However, Bahati said the funds are to be obtained through domestic borrowing (borrowing from local commercial banks), a thing analysts say is curtailing private sector credit growth because local companies and individuals are competing with government.
The MPs, however, declined to entertain the request, saying they need to obtain clearance from the Committee on National Economy on whether the domestic loan request will be approved.
Lugoloobi said he will bring the matter to Speaker Rebecca Kadaga’s notice.
Bahati further said that the supplementary request is also intended to finance a Shs49 billion wage shortfall across Ministries while Shs20 billion is meant for government’s purchase of shares in Atiak sugar factory.
Uganda Prisons Service is to get Shs10bn for food, Shs250m for recruitment and validation of health workers and Shs190bn for the Ministry of Water and Environment’s counterpart funding of “farm income enhancement and forestry conservation.
Shs1billion is to finance the procurement of an online registration system for the Uganda Registration Services Bureau.
Bhati’s statement shows that the High Commission in Kigali requires Shs377 million, “to cater for budget shortfalls on rent and mission staff salaries shortfalls”.
Bahati said the Mission has been “put on notice for eviction by the landlord if the outstanding rent obligation is not cleared”.
The Finance Ministry said it also requires Shs7.7billion “to cater for operational funds and investment promotion activities under Uganda Investment Authority”.
Ministry of Trade will use Shs9.2bn to settle outstanding Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa ahead of its May summit in Bujumbura.
Shs15.38bn is to cater for counterpart funding to the grants for the elderly under Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development.
The NAADS Secretariat will use Shs80 billion to cater for the procurement of hoes as promised by President Yoweri Museveni during his 2016 presidential elections campaign.
Others are compensations in the Lands Ministry and wages in other Ministries.
