Bushenyi District Local Government is set to return over Shs 1.7 billion meant for wages and salaries to the Consolidated Fund after failing to recruit staff due to delays in establishing a functional District Service Commission. The funds are expected to lapse under provisions of Section 17 of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) 2015 (as amended) and the Local Governments Act (Cap 243), which require government entities that do not spend allocated funds by the end of the financial year to return the unspent balances to the national Consolidated Fund.
Bushenyi District Chief Administrative Officer Phionah Sanyu said the district has explored several options to utilize the funds, but has been unable to recruit staff due to challenges surrounding the establishment of a District Service Commission. She explained that while the district council had previously agreed to recruit staff, the process was disrupted after neighbouring councils they intended to recruit from had their terms expire, complicating the arrangement.
Sanyu added that having a fully constituted service commission is essential, not only for recruitment but also for handling disciplinary cases and retirement processes. She noted that although a new commission was approved in May, delays in operationalisation have left the district with backlogs of disciplinary cases involving interdicted staff and workers who have absconded.
She further warned that the unspent wage bill could rise to about Shs 2 billion due to ongoing disciplinary cases that affect payroll absorption. “So the advert normally is the one that takes a lot of time since we had secured that time already, praying that if we got a commission, they just shortlist and the interviews are done,” Sanyu said.
She added that ongoing court proceedings have made it difficult for the district to defend retaining the funds for recruitment purposes before the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Local Government. “It is our prayer, how long does it take to have this commission approved by Public Service, vis-à-vis the return of the money? Since we submitted the names, ours is to wait and see when they are invited for interviews and all that,” she said.
District Chairperson Prosper Twebaze said the district is awaiting approval of the names submitted to the Public Service Commission to operationalise the service commission. He noted that Bushenyi currently has more than 50 vacancies in the health and education sectors, alongside a significant number of staff in acting positions, while others are due for promotion or retirement.
The development comes amid a legal dispute, in which a section of district councillors petitioned the Bushenyi High Court seeking a judicial review of the conduct of the district leadership. The councillors accuse District Chairperson Twebaze and Speaker Banyanga of allegedly approving the District Service Commission and other committees without following proper procedures. The case is scheduled for a hearing on July 14-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
