Daily Monitor
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
The junior minister for Defence, Gen. Jeje Odong, was yesterday
asked to explain an ‘irregular bank account’ which the ministry operates
to keep money received from the African Union Mission in Somalia
(Amisom).
Uganda contributes the largest number of troops to Amisom, the continent’s peace enforcement mission in Somalia.
The questioning came after Parliament’s committee
on defence and internal affairs, led by Mr Milton Muwuma, said there is
no information about this account reflected in the ministry’s budget.
Mr Muwuma told the House plenary session that the
account was opened irregularly, without following the law as required by
Article 153(2) of the Constitution.
“Despite the lengthy deliberations with the
Accountant General on the mode of operation of the Amisom account and
the transmission mechanism of the funds from the AU to the Consolidated
Fund, the committee is concerned about the legality and prudence of
establishing and maintaining a special account by the Ministry of
Defence without an Act of Parliament,” Mr Muwuma said.
The committee proposed that the Defence ministry
considers remitting the Amisom revenues to the UPDF fund as established
by Section 25 of the UPDF Act. However, Gen. Odong insisted that the
account is regular and was opened in line with Uganda’s laws.
“The
authority of this account exists because section 9 of the Public Finance
Act authorises the opening of such an account,” he said.
His explanation was challenged by Mr Kassiano Wadri, the chairman of the Public Accounts Committee.
“The
accounts are not operated in Uganda, you can’t say they are regular
when people manning it are not in Mbuya where the ministry sits.”