Minister Monica Musenero
Parliament has instituted an adhoc Committee that will look into allegations that Monica Musenero, Minister of Science and Technology mismanaged billions of funds released for the research leading to the manufacture of covid-19 vaccines.
While announcing the Committee composition during the plenary sitting today, Deputy Speaker Anita Among gave the Committee terms of reference and ordered the Committee to report back to Parliament within two weeks.
The Select committee constituted under rule 190 will be headed by Xavier Kyooma (Ibanda North), Paul Omara (Otuke County), Aisha Kabanda (DWR Butambala), Solomon Silywany (Bukooli Central) and Tony Awany (Nwoya County).
The Deputy Speaker asked the Committee, “To establish the progress of the locally manufactured covid 19 vaccine. To establish the amount of funds released for research and innovation and covid vaccine development, and establish how effective such funds have been utilized.”
Among also asked the ad hoc Committee to look into the challenges faced in development of covid 19 vaccines.
The constitution of the ad hoc committee followed a stream of documents tabled by Yona Musinguzi (Ntungamo Municipality) detailing the how Minister Musenero misused funds to a tune of Shs31Bn allocated to the Presidential Scientific Initiative on Epidemics (PRESIDE) meant for the development of Uganda’s Covid-19 vaccine.
Musinguzi cited an incidence of money to a tune of Shs1.8Bn sent to a doctor at Uganda Virus Research Institute but the scientist has denied ever receiving the money.
The Musinguzi dossier accused Musenero of hatching her fraud racket with the help of her husband Michael Masanza and Abbey Winston Werekhwa who is a nephew to the Minister.
Musinguzi also warned Parliament that if they continue injecting funds into Covid research under leadership of Minister Musenero, taxpayers will lose out saying that research and development of a vaccine can only be developed in a bio-safety lab level four and such a laboratory is only found in South Africa and the one Makerere University has together with Uganda Virus Research Institute is at level two.
