Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Tuesday completed vetting President Yoweri Museveni’s newest ministerial nominees, recommending approval for 80 of the 82 candidates and signaling a Cabinet with a strong anti-corruption focus.
Chaired by Speaker Jacob Marksons Oboth, the two-day hearings approved most nominees, rejected one, Victoria University Vice Chancellor Dr. Lawrence Muganga over dual citizenship, and deferred consideration of First Lady Janet Kataha Museveni because she was unavailable.
The committee will formally communicate its recommendations to the President under Rules 173 and 177 of Parliament’s Rules of Procedure.
While the hearings touched on a range of national issues, including Ebola preparedness and public service reforms, corruption emerged as the dominant theme. Several nominees described graft, revenue leakages, patronage in recruitment, and weak accountability as major barriers to service delivery and economic transformation.
State Minister for Local Government designate, Justine Nameere, warned that local revenues were being “under-declared,” citing whistle-blower reports, and pledged tighter supervision of city, district, and division finances.
Her concerns mirror repeated findings from the Auditor General, parliamentary Public Accounts Committees, and the Inspectorate of Government that have documented chronic financial mismanagement at the local government level despite existing anti-corruption laws and strategies.
State Minister for Public Service designate, Lydia Wanyoto, focused on recruitment abuses, saying there are reports of public service boards demanding bribes for jobs. “We shall ensure that Ugandans who qualify go through due recruitment processes and that no Ugandan pays for a public service job,” she told URN.
Her remarks addressed public frustration over patronage networks that undermine merit-based hiring and contravene the Public Service Standing Orders and the Public Service Act-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
